I joined the Environmental Health Group at LSHTM in 2011. Prior to joining LSHTM, I worked as an epidemiologist at the Dutch National Institute for Public Health (RIVM) where I completed the European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET). Before that, I was based on the Copperbelt in Zambia where I managed Emory University HIV research projects. I have a BSc First Class Honours degree in Natural Sciences from the University of Birmingham and an MSc in Control of Infectious Diseases from LSHTM.
Affiliations
Department of Disease Control
Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases
Centres
Centre for Evaluation
Teaching
Most of my face-to-face teaching at LSHTM takes place in Term 2 on the following in-house MSc modules: WASH and Health; Applied Communicable Disease Control and Evaluation of Public Health Interventions. I also give lectures on the Diploma in Tropical Nursing and the Diploma in Tropical Medicine courses.
I am Deputy Module Organiser for the Distance Learning Water and Sanitation Module IDM215.
I am a Personal Tutor and Supervisor of summer projects on the MSc courses Control of Infectious Diseases and Public Health for Development.
I am Deputy Module Organiser for the Distance Learning Water and Sanitation Module IDM215.
I am a Personal Tutor and Supervisor of summer projects on the MSc courses Control of Infectious Diseases and Public Health for Development.
Research
My research focuses on the study and measurement of hygiene behaviour and the development and evaluation of behaviour change interventions.
I am currently working on two clinical trials of interventions to interrupt trachoma transmission in Ethiopia. The "Stronger-SAFE trial" is a large, four-arm cluster-randomised controlled trial to test whether enhanced azithromycin treatment (two doses, two weeks apart) combined with targeted transmission-interrupting strategies (face washing and fly control) can more effectively eliminate trachoma than current approaches. I am leading the development and evaluation of the face washing intervention tested in this trial. In the FA-WASH trial we are exploring whether face washing with soap removes Chlamydia trachomatis bacteria from children's faces better than washing with just water.
My PhD research was conducted in Lusaka, Zambia and involved the design and evaluation (outcomes and process) of a multiple behaviour change intervention to control childhood diarrhoea through exclusive breastfeeding, handwashing and use of oral rehydration salts.
I have conducted formative research and been involved in several behaviour change trials in Asia (India, Indonesia, Nepal) and Africa (Zambia, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana).
I am currently working on two clinical trials of interventions to interrupt trachoma transmission in Ethiopia. The "Stronger-SAFE trial" is a large, four-arm cluster-randomised controlled trial to test whether enhanced azithromycin treatment (two doses, two weeks apart) combined with targeted transmission-interrupting strategies (face washing and fly control) can more effectively eliminate trachoma than current approaches. I am leading the development and evaluation of the face washing intervention tested in this trial. In the FA-WASH trial we are exploring whether face washing with soap removes Chlamydia trachomatis bacteria from children's faces better than washing with just water.
My PhD research was conducted in Lusaka, Zambia and involved the design and evaluation (outcomes and process) of a multiple behaviour change intervention to control childhood diarrhoea through exclusive breastfeeding, handwashing and use of oral rehydration salts.
I have conducted formative research and been involved in several behaviour change trials in Asia (India, Indonesia, Nepal) and Africa (Zambia, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana).
Research Area
Behaviour change
Hygiene
Personal hygiene, health habits
Sanitation
Complex interventions
Evaluation
Impact evaluation
Disease control
Global health
Child health
Randomised controlled trials
Disease and Health Conditions
Trachoma
Diarrhoeal diseases
Country
Ethiopia
Zambia
India
Region
Sub-Saharan Africa (developing only)
South Asia
Selected Publications
Comparison of structured observation and pictorial 24 h recall of household activities to measure the prevalence of handwashing with soap in the community.
2018
International journal of environmental health research
Effect of a School-Based Hygiene Behavior Change Campaign on Handwashing with Soap in Bihar, India: Cluster-Randomized Trial.
2018
The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene
Costs of diarrhoea and acute respiratory infection attributable to not handwashing: the cases of India and China.
2017
Tropical medicine & international health
Multiple behaviour change intervention for diarrhoea control in Lusaka, Zambia: a cluster randomised trial.
2016
The Lancet Global health
The epidemiology of soil-transmitted helminths in Bihar State, India.
2015
PLoS neglected tropical diseases
Effect of a behaviour-change intervention on handwashing with soap in India (SuperAmma): a cluster-randomised trial.
2014
The Lancet Global health