In 2014, Dr Bashorun was awarded a prestigious MRCG-funded MSc in Epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM).Dr Adedapo Olufemi Bashorun is a Clinical Trial Coordinator working in the Vaccines and Immunity Theme, at MRC Unit The Gambia (MRCG) and has a strong interest in preventive medicine. His professional background is in general medical practice and he has more than four years research experience in clinical vaccine trials. Since joining MRCG in 2011, Dr Bashorun has worked and contributed immensely to the success of multiple projects at The Unit.

Dr Bashorun first came to MRCG as a medical student on an internship from Lagos State University College of Medicine in 2006. He graduated as a medical doctor in 2007 and returned to MRCG in November 2011 as a research clinician and team leader in the nationwide Gambian survey of tuberculosis prevalence (GAMSTEP). While in The Unit, Dr Bashorun worked briefly in the Pneumonia Etiology Research for Child Health (PERCH) observational study in Basse before entering the field of clinical vaccine trials. He first worked at Faji Kunda on the Bill & Melinda Gates funded Inactivated Poliovirus Vaccine (IPV) trial before moving on to the phase 1/2 10-valent pneumococcal-conjugate-vaccine (PCV10) trial. Recently Dr Bashorun served as a co-investigator and clinical trial coordinator on the WHO funded fractional IPV (fIPV) campaign study.

According to Dr Bashorun, the fIPV trial was a short, intensive, and very challenging study conducted during the period of the political impasse in The Gambia. During the study 3,189 under-5 year old children were recruited over three to four months in five main sites (Somita, Sibanor, Bwiam, Gunjur and Sanyang). The team subsequently vaccinated 2,720 of these children over 3 days across these sites. “This so far, has surpassed all the trials that I have been a part of, in terms of its complexity and uniqueness,” he added. Given the key importance of the results generated to the global polio eradication initiative, within only a few weeks of completing the trial Dr Bashorun presented the provisional results to the WHO polio research committee at a meeting in Geneva.

When asked to comment, Ed Clarke, Head of Infant Immunology said, “Dapo has without doubt played a key role in the success of all the vaccine trials on which we have worked over the last 4 years. His exceptional ability to coordinate the activities of a very large field team were exemplified during the recent fIPV trial which involved a team of well over 100 people, working to an extremely intensive schedule. While firm when necessary, he is also both extremely well liked and respected by everyone who works with him. All these skills will certainly be needed during the phase 3 PNEUMOSIL vaccine trial on which he is the clinical trial coordinator. I am very confident that his passion, organisational and team management skills, combined with the research training he has gained during his MSc will ensure that he has a bright academic future ahead.”