London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

Scaling New Heights in Medicine and Public Health

As I reflect on my career and those of inspirational women in medicine/public health, it doesn’t escape me that while some are privileged to experience linear ascent in conducive environments, most must be acutely aware of creative opportunities to scale heights (of bespoke altitudes). Whether we opt for ladders or explore mountains (beyond mountains) it is important to find the best tools to upskill and carry one's weight forward, not without our belayers. I found the Professional Certificate in Pharmacoepidemiology & Pharmacovigilance course as an intuitive next step in my efforts to advance my understanding of pharmacoepidemiology to deliver better pharmacovigilance.

Beginning of My Career: Foundations in Clinical Research

I started my career as a research medical officer at the St. John’s Research Institute (Bengaluru) and exposure to the rigour of clinical research drew my attention to the importance of evidence-based medicine. In 2014, I attended a titration meeting for DEVOTE, the first safety outcomes trial evaluating the noninferiority in risk of major cardiovascular events (MACE) for Tresiba-U100 versus insulin Glargine U-100. It was an insightful experience to catch a glimpse of the efforts undertaken to ensure patient safety.

Public Health for Development: A Global Perspective

After completing my MSc at LSHTM in Public Health for Development (now entitled Public Health for Global Practice), I returned to India to work at the Y R Gaitonde Centre for AIDS Research and Education (Chennai) as a clinical epidemiologist. I learnt to navigate the practical challenges of frontline data collection, while implementing culturally acceptable harm reduction measures, devising testing pathways for key populations, and deconstructing barriers to primary care. In collaboration with faculty at Johns Hopkins University, I learnt to develop protocols, implement them, and contribute to the publication of results. I learnt that at the heart of a formidable pandemic, response are equitable healthcare policies informed by global translational research and powered by data-driven implementation strategies.

Answering the Call: Frontline Work During the COVID-19 Pandemic

I found my greatest call to duty during the COVID-19 pandemic. Time on the frontline was a test of everything that I had learnt in medicine and public health. I was juggling three roles – frontline physician, clinical epidemiologist, and public health researcher. During my interaction with communities and patients, part of multiple vaccine confidence initiatives, it dawned on me that I could do better in understanding and communicating novel research findings to individual patients and communities. More recently, I have been a sub-investigator of a clinical trial that examines the safety and efficacy of preventive therapy for household contacts of MDR-TB. I am entrusted with the responsibility of examining evidence and reporting serious adverse events to NIH/DAIDS and the institutional review board. These experiences and the evolving industry requirements led me to the Professional Certificate in Pharmacoepidemiology & Pharmacovigilance course. The course structure is complementary to my work schedule and parenting responsibilities. I believe that this course will help me dispense my duties comprehensively.

Course Insights: Advancing My Expertise in Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacovigilance

In keeping with the high academic standards at LSHTM and the cross-cultural collaborative spirit, the course is organised well to highlight scientific reporting requirements and student experiences from diverse income settings. 

The course is structured to introduce the principles of pharmacoepidemiology in the first block, pivoting then to the landscape of legislative and regulatory requirements in the UK and internationally. The final block is a level-up for most professionals in clinical research as it focuses on traditional and newer approaches to undertaking and interpreting multivariable analyses. 

I look forward most to the discussions on applying pharmacoepidemiology evidence for planning risk management and improving patient safety. I appreciate the tutor-guided, between block activities as practice exam questions and critical appraisal of scientific evidence. Apart from the faculty, I found discussions with fellow students, with varying degrees of experience, particularly insightful.

Preparing for Future Challenges in Public Health

Finally, in this era of disinformation plaguing public reasoning combined with declining international support for global health research and development, researchers, practitioners, and professionals must build their capacities and optimise their circle of influence in preparation for potential pandemics and complex emergencies. While most researchers are rightly concerned about the threat of dysregulated artificial intelligence rendering their efforts redundant and replaceable, I believe author Jerry Kaplan may be right – “The future looks a lot more like the past than you might expect.”

I wish fellow and future students the best in their aspirations and efforts.

Dr Rifa Tazyeem Khan 

• Learn more about the Professional Certificate in Pharmacoepidemiology & Pharmacovigilance
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