My background is interdisciplinary: after graduating with a BSc in Medical Microbiology (The University of Edinburgh), I completed a dPhil in HIV Immunology (The University of Oxford), and then a MSc in Epidemiology (The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine).
I joined LSHTM in 2008 and have worked on the evaluation of large-scale public health interventions with female sex workers and adolescent girls in south India, including two cluster-RCTs funded by DFID and the MRC-SA. I am particularly interested in understanding the structural drivers of HIV risk, including violence, mental health, and alcohol use problems. I have also worked on the prevention of child marriage and secondary school drop-out among adolescent girls.
My most recent study (Maisha Fiti) in Nairobi, Kenya, is funded by the Medical Research Council and DFID. This longitudinal study with 1000 women aimed to understand the immunological pathways linking violence experience to HIV risk and disease progession.
I joined LSHTM in 2008 and have worked on the evaluation of large-scale public health interventions with female sex workers and adolescent girls in south India, including two cluster-RCTs funded by DFID and the MRC-SA. I am particularly interested in understanding the structural drivers of HIV risk, including violence, mental health, and alcohol use problems. I have also worked on the prevention of child marriage and secondary school drop-out among adolescent girls.
My most recent study (Maisha Fiti) in Nairobi, Kenya, is funded by the Medical Research Council and DFID. This longitudinal study with 1000 women aimed to understand the immunological pathways linking violence experience to HIV risk and disease progession.
Affiliations
Department of Global Health and Development
Faculty of Public Health and Policy
Centres
Centre for Evaluation
Teaching
I am a tutor on the Control of Infectious Disease and Global Mental Health MSc.
I was previously Module Organiser for the Social Epidemiology module and taught on The Fundamentals of Global Mental Health and AIDS modules.
I was previously Module Organiser for the Social Epidemiology module and taught on The Fundamentals of Global Mental Health and AIDS modules.
Research
My research is interdisciplinary, and draws on the epidemiologal, social and biological sciences to better understand the structural drivers of HIV risk and design interventions to improve health outcomes for female sex workers and adolescent girls.
My current research is hypothesis driven, and aims to understand how up-stream determinants, such as poverty, violence, mental health and alcohol use problems impact on biological HIV risk and disease progression.
Methodologically, my research makes use of mixed-methods primary data collected through behavioural and biological surveys, and qualitative interviews. I have worked on two cluster-RCTs and my current study is a longitudinal, cohort study.
I enjoy public engagement, particularly creating and using short films to communicate context in science. Following moments in the lives of two women, this recent short film sets the scene for the Maisha Fiti study in Nairobi, Kenya, and how sex workers are coming together to address the violence and stigma that they face. https://youtu.be/KtSvK_4QIlk
I supervise three doctoral students from Kenya, The Gambia, and Canada.
My current research is hypothesis driven, and aims to understand how up-stream determinants, such as poverty, violence, mental health and alcohol use problems impact on biological HIV risk and disease progression.
Methodologically, my research makes use of mixed-methods primary data collected through behavioural and biological surveys, and qualitative interviews. I have worked on two cluster-RCTs and my current study is a longitudinal, cohort study.
I enjoy public engagement, particularly creating and using short films to communicate context in science. Following moments in the lives of two women, this recent short film sets the scene for the Maisha Fiti study in Nairobi, Kenya, and how sex workers are coming together to address the violence and stigma that they face. https://youtu.be/KtSvK_4QIlk
I supervise three doctoral students from Kenya, The Gambia, and Canada.
Research Area
Social epidemiology
Randomised controlled trials
Immunology
Violence against women and girls
Female sex work
Adolescent health
Global mental health
Complex interventions
Social and structural determinants of health
Disease and Health Conditions
Mental health
HIV/AIDS
Country
Kenya
India
Region
Sub-Saharan Africa (developing only)
South Asia
Selected Publications
Violence across the Life Course and Implications for Intervention Design: Findings from the Maisha Fiti Study with Female Sex Workers in Nairobi, Kenya.
2023
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Conducting Violence and Mental Health Research with Female Sex Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Ethical Considerations, Challenges, and Lessons Learned from the Maisha Fiti Study in Nairobi, Kenya.
2023
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Exploring the Mental Health Experiences and Perceived Social and Sexual Risks among Female Sex Workers in Nairobi, Kenya
2023
University of Nairobi Collaborative Meeting
Managing motherhood - the experiences of female sex workers in Nairobi, Kenya.
2022
Culture, health & sexuality
Mental health challenges and perceived risks among female sex Workers in Nairobi, Kenya.
2022
BMC public health
Harmful Alcohol and Drug Use Is Associated with Syndemic Risk Factors among Female Sex Workers in Nairobi, Kenya.
2022
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
