Researcher Profile

I am a medical doctor and public health researcher with extensive training in epidemiology, public health, behavioral intervention, health system and policy research. I have a strong background in disease surveillance, laboratory based research, randomised control trial, experimental designs, case control study, longitudinal cohort, large scale nationwide surveys, qualitative study and economic evaluations. I have strong background in infectious disease epidemiology, and my current research interests primarily focus on prevention and control non communicable diseases through strengthening the local health systems. Thus my research involves epidemiological studied of non communicable diseases including hypertension, diabetes, myocardial infarction, chronic respiratory diseases, cancer, obesity, rheumatology and mental health,  which may be broadened to exploring role of common acute health conditions, such as, diarrhea, typhoid fever, pneumonia, food safety, evaluations of new vaccines, etc. for attributing for non-communicable diseases.

I have a long track record of attracting research grant and since 2013. I have raised substantial funding for chronic disease research in Bangladesh and other South Asian countries. Currently I have been leading randomised control trials on improving primary care strategies for control of cardio-vascular diseases and type 2 diabetes in Bangladesh. Recently I have generated the largest data in South Asia for the assessment of risk factors of myocardial infarction (MI) among patients with first ever MI attack. I have been actively involved in designing and evaluating innovative health systems solutions, and have been awarded a number of competitive grants in a wide range of common NCD research areas, including stroke, diabetic retinopathy, maternal depression, work site intervention, cancer, childhood obesity etc., as a PI or a co-PI. I have extensive expertise in training a large study team in order to successfully carry out large scale community bases interventions that have laid the necessary groundwork for developing innovative solutions for the prevention and control of NCDs in South Asia. I have excellent leadership capacity to motivate and mobilise large groups including international collaborations and essential scientific diplomacy skills for maintaining effective collaborations with the Ministry of Health or national institutions.

I have a good a track record of publication and since 2014 I have published 52 manuscripts in international peer-reviewed journals. Recently I have published a book as the lead Editor of a book on Bangladesh health system and its transition over time for achieving MDG 4 published by World Health Organization. The book has comprehensively presented the gaps in research and health systems in Bangladesh and has been a reference book for the MPH programs in Bangladesh. I am actively involved in capacity building in research and scientific leadership in public health. Recently I have been awarded D71 International Research Training Planning Grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) USA and also have developed a Clinical Research Platform in collaborations with the British Medical Journal one of the leading international peer reviewed journal and Bongobondhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University the premier post graduate institutions in Bangladesh that offer post graduate degree for doctors in Bangladesh. I have served as a Faculty in various institutions including Tulane University in New Orleans, USA and James P Grant School of Public Health in Dhaka Bangladesh. In icddr,b I mentor  a number of junior researchers to build a research career in Noncommunicable diseases with a special concentration in health systems research. Our department also hosts internship programs to mentor students for developing capacity in NCD research for those who come from various reputed institutions, including Umea University, National University of Singapore (NUS) etc. I serve as a member of several international professional organizations and societies. My long experience in research particularly my expertise in chronic disease, behavioral science and health system intervention justify my contribution in the proposed project.

Morbidity and mortality from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in high in LMICs. Very little research has been done in South Asian countries in order to assess the actual burden of the common NCDs and assessing their risk factors. I have contributed a number of global disease burden studies in order to generate essential evidence of burden of NCDs and risk factors globally. I have been involved with developing and implementing a number research studies as the PI for assessing the burden of NCDs and modifiable risk factors in Bangladesh and other South Asian countries in order to develop primary care strategies for control and prevention of NCDs in LMICs, including myocardial infarction in urban population, control of hypertension among rural population in 3 countries in South Asia, evaluation of lifestyle intervention for preventing type 2 diabetes among women with gestational diabetes in 3 countries in South Asia, feasibility assessment of childhood obesity control in urban areas etc. Evidence generated from the ongoing studies will give valuable directions for development of suitable NCD control and prevention strategies in Bangladesh and other LMICs in South Asia.

Food and water borne disease including diarrhea and other enteric disease that are prevalent in Bangladesh and other low income countries, are an important cause of illness in young children. Due to advent of the oral rehydration solutions mortality from diarrhea has substantially reduced, but the burden still remains high, particularly in young children. There has been limited evidence of burden and risk factors of enteric disease in South Asian region. I have led a number of researches on food and water borne diseases as the PI including a population based typhoid fever surveillance in urban areas, nationwide Shigella dysenteriae type 1 surveillance, assessment risk factors for typhoid fever, evaluation of rapid diagnostic tools for early detection of cholera and typhoid fever, assessment of microbial risk in street food for contributing to enteric disease etc. As a result, WHO has made modified the recommendation of first line therapy for treating  dysentery type 1 and the rapid diagnostic tool for cholera has been made commercially available at low cost. Based on my study findings I was also able to develop an innovative locally appropriate intervention for promoting street food safety and evaluate its impact on reducing microbial contamination in street food in urban areas in Bangladesh. Recently the study has led to formulating a street food safety policy in the training curriculum developed  for improving knowledge and behavioral change among the mobile street food vendors has been adopted by Dhaka City Corporation authority for promoting street food safety in the capital city of Bangladesh.

I have led a number of communities and hospital based studies on pneumonia and assesses the burden of vaccine preventing bacterial pneumonia in young children including pneumococcal and Hib vaccine as the PI and co-PI. Those studies have generated burden of pneumonia and contribution of vaccine preventable pneumonia in children in Bangladesh and other South Asian countries. As result of the study we were able to recommend formulation of a suitable pneumococcal vaccine for the developing countries including South Asia, and the vaccine industries  were able to manufacture an appropriate pneumococcal vaccine that were made commercially available in all developing countries at low cost. As a result of the study we were able to advocate the government of Bangladesh for introduction of Hib vaccine in the national immunisation program in 2009 and early introduction of pneumococcal vaccine in 2013.

Honors:

• 2017  BMJ Award South Asia (The winner under the category ‘The Mental Health Team of the Year’)
• 2016  Cooperative Research Award Harvard Medical School Centre for Global Health Delivery-Dubai.
• 2014  Asia Pacific Observatory Fellowship by WHO.
• 2014  Rotary International Award
• 2014  Nandos Women Leadership Award
• 2013  Grand Challenge Canada's Stars in Global Health – Round 4 Phase I
• 2009  Awarded scholarship by Tulane School of Public Health to pursue doctoral training in Health Systems Management
• 2009  Received "Gender Mainstreaming in Health Research" award from the Gender, Human Rights and Health Program of icddr,b
• 2008  Awarded the travel grant to attend the 6th “International Symposium on Pneumococci & Pneumococcal Diseases” in June 2008 in Reykjavik, Iceland
• 2006  Awarded the travel grant to attend the 5th “International Symposium on Pneumococci & Pneumococcal Diseases” in April 2006 in Alice Springs, Australia
• 2005  Awarded grant for attending the 3rd  workshop on the “Ethical Issues in International Health Research” held in 2005 at Harvard University in Boston ,MA, USA
• 2005  Awarded the travel grant to attend the “Global Forum on Bioethics in Research VI” in 2005 in Blantyre, Malawi
• 2004  Awarded the travel grant to attend the “KOSEF-JSPS Asian Science Seminar” in Seoul, Korea
• 2001  Awarded Columbus Foundation Fellowship by the MPH program of Johns Hopkins University
• 2001  Staff Development Fund awarded by ICDDRB to join the MPH program
• 2001  Declared as “The Gates-Bangladesh Fellow” for 2001 by icddr,b

Membership of Editorial Boards

• 2015         The British Medical Journal
• 2014         Editor, Advances in Medicine
• 2012         Member, Editorial Board Dataset Papers in Medicine
• 2012         Member, Editorial Board ISRN Preventive Medicine
• 2008 - 2012  Member, International Advisory Board, Indian Journal of Medical Ethics
• 2006 - 2012  Reviewer of peer reviewed journals: Vaccine, Tropical Medicine and International Health, Biomed Central Pediatrics, Journal of Health, population and Nutrition, Scandinavian Journal of Infectious Disease, Journal of Infection, Journal of Pedaitric Biochemistry, British Journal of Medicine and Medical Research, British Microbiology Research Journal, Journal of Infectious Diseases and Immunity, Health Systems and Policy Research. ISRN Preventive Medicine, African Journal of Microbiology Research, and PLOS ONE

Membership of Committees

• 2017         Member, Mental & Physical Health in South Asia Group
• 2016         Member, National Consortium for Evidence and Action on Disability in Health, Handicap  international Bangladesh.
• 2014         Member, "Health Systems Global TWG - Ethics of Health Systems Research" group.
• 2004 - 2009  Member, Ethical review Committee of ICDDR,B.
• 2009         Member, Subcommittee for developing “Guideline for Genetic Research: An overview of icddr,b”
• 2007         Member, working group on 'Teaching Public Health Ethics in India: A Curriculum Review' organized by the Public Health Foundation of India
• 2008 - 2009  Member, Task Force of Institutionalization of a Healthy Street Food System in Bangladesh
• 2008 - 2009  Member, Working Group on Formulation of Draft Street Food Vending Policies and Guidelines for Bangladesh
• 2006         Member, Best Poster Selection Committee, Eight Commonwealth Congress on Diarrhoea and Malnutrition (CPAGAN)
• 2007         Member, Best Poster Selection Committee, Eleventh Annual Scientific Conference (ASCON)

Naheed A, Koly KN, Uddin Ahmed H, Akhter S, Uddin MMJ, Smith Fawzi MC, Chandir S, Mannan M, Hossain S, Nelson C, Munir K. "Implementing a Mental Health Care Program and Home-Based Training for Mothers of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder in an Urban Population in Bangladesh: Protocol for a Feasibility Assessment Study.  JMIR Res Protoc. 2017 Dec 14                                                                  

Jafar TH, Jehan I, de Silva HA, Naheed A, Gandhi M, Assam P, Finkelstein EA, Quigley HL, Bilger M, Khan AH, Clemens JD, Ebrahim S, Turner EL; for COBRA-BPS Study Group, Kasturiratne A. " Multicomponent intervention versus usual care for management of hypertension in rural Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka: study protocol for a cluster randomized controlled trial.  Trials. 2017 Jun

Jafar TH, Silva Ad, Naheed A, Jehan I, Liang F, Assam PN, Legido-Quigley H, Finkelstein EA, Ebrahim S, Wickremasinghe R, Alam D, Khan AH; COBRA-BPS Study Group. "Control of blood pressure and risk attenuation: a public health intervention in rural Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka: feasibility trial results.   J Hypertens  2016 Sep 

Chowdhury R, Alam DS, Fakir II, Adnan SD, Naheed A, Tasmin I, Monower MM, Hossain F, Hossain FM, Rahman MM, Afrin S, Roy AK, Akter M, Sume SA, Biswas AK, Pennells L, Surendran P, Young RD, Spackman SA, Hasan K, Harshfield E, Sheikh N, Houghton R, Saleheen D, Howson JM, Butterworth AS; Cardiology Research Group, Raqib R, Majumder AA, Danesh J, Di Angelantonio E.  " The Bangladesh Risk of Acute Vascular Events (BRAVE) Study: objectives and design. Eur J Epidemiol 2015 Jul 30

Ahmed S, Chowdhury MA, Khan MA, Huq NL, Naheed A. " Access to primary health care for acute vascular events in rural low income settings: a mixed methods study. BMC Health Serv Res. 2017 Jan 18                 

Islam, SMS.,Islam, M.T., Islam, A., Rodgers, A., Chow, C.K., Naheed, A.  National drug policy reform for noncommunicable diseases in low-resource countries: an example from Bangladesh. Bull World Health Organ. 2017 May 1

Naheed A, Ram PK, Brooks WA, Hossain MA, Parsons MB, Talukder KA, Mintz E, Luby S, Breiman RF. "Burden of typhoid and paratyphoid fever in a densely populated urban community, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Int J Infect  Dis. 2010 Sep 14

Naheed A, Saha SK, Breiman RF, Khatun F, Brooks WA, El Arifeen S, Sack D, Luby SP; Pneumococcal Study Group." Multihospital surveillance of pneumonia burden among children aged 

Naheed A, Ram PK, Brooks WA, Mintz ED, Hossain MA, Parsons MM, Luby SP, Breiman RF.  Clinical value of Tubex and Typhidot rapid diagnostic tests for typhoid fever in an urban community clinic in Bangladesh.  Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis. 2008 Aug

Naheed A, Walker Fischer CL, Mondal D, Ahmed S, Arifeen SE, Yunus M, Black RE, Baqui AH. Zinc therapy for diarrhoea improves growth among Bangladeshi infants 6 to 11 months of age. J Pediatr Gastroenterol 2009 Jan 4