Our team
Professor Lisa White
CoMo Consortium Co-Lead
Lisa is a mathematical modeller with a focus on global health and policymaking. Her work combines within and between host infection models with multi-strain/species modelling to consider the characterisation, emergence and spread of antimicrobial drug resistance and containment.
Dr Rima Shretta
CoMo Consortium Co-Lead
Rima is a global health expert, with over 20 years of experience in over 25 countries in Africa and Asia in the areas of health systems strengthening, pharmaceutical management, economics and financing. Her current work focuses on using real-world epidemiological and economic and financial evidence to support integrated strategies for multiple diseases.
Dr Ricardo Aguas
Senior Modeller and CoMo Consortium Technical lead
Ricardo is a mathematical modeller of infectious diseases and currently leads the Analytical Tools for Malaria Elimination (AToME) group at the University of Oxford.
Ricardo has previously developed genotype to phenotype mapping tools to identify host-species transition events such as MERS and SARS and has vast experience in modelling epidemic and pandemic outbreaks.
Olivier Celhay
Interface Lead
As a Data Scientist with 15 years’ experience, Olivier has designed and led the implementation of large-scale surveys, leveraged new technologies for surveillance systems in resource-constrained settings, and used both standard and cutting-edge data analysis methods to support decision making in public health, with a focus on malaria. Recently, Olivier has focused on designing and developing interactive applications to bridge the gap between research and policymaking.
Professor Proochista Ariana
Training Lead
Professor Proochista Ariana is Course Director for the MSc in International Health and Tropical Medicine, Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine. Her research empirically examines the relationship between processes of development and health in resource limited and transition contexts, appreciating the multidimensionality of both. Proochista holds a Masters in International Health from Harvard University and a Doctorate in International Development from University of Oxford, as well as a Post Graduate Diploma in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, also from Oxford.
Nathaniel Hupert
Associate Professor and Policy Lead
Nathaniel Hupert, MD, MPH, is a practicing clinician and public health researcher focusing on healthcare processes and emergency response logistics. Using a variety of methods including Process Mining and Discrete Event Simulation, his research seeks to improve the effectiveness of care delivery in both conventional and crisis settings. Since September 2000, he has collaborated with local, state, federal, and international public health officials in advancing clinical and health system preparedness for bioterrorism and other public health emergencies. In addition to his academic position, he is Senior Advisor for both the CDC’s Division of Preparedness and Emerging Infections and the DHHS National Healthcare Preparedness Program. Dr. Hupert trained at Harvard Medical School, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and the Harvard School of Public Health.
Naima Nasir
Training Coordinator and Project Management
Naima has an MSc in International Health and Tropical Medicine from the University of Oxford. She supports the coordination and management of Consortium membership and activities. Naima monitors consortium activities and identifies training needs of members, as well as organising and delivering training and mentoring sessions/workshops. Naima organises and updates training materials/templates and resources for members through an accessible shared platform. In addition, she also manages technical and administrative enquiries from members and refers for support where appropriate.
Professor Roberto A. Kraenkel
Regional Lead – South and North America
Roberto holds a BA in Physics from the University of São Paulo (1981), a Master’s in Physics from the University of São Paulo (1984), a PhD in Physics from the Instituto de Fisica Teorica (1988) and a PhD in Physics from IFT-UNESP (2005). He completed a post-doctorate at IHES (Paris) and served as a visiting professor and researcher at the Universities of Montpellier and Marseille. He is currently a researcher at the Institute of Theoretical Physics (IFT) at Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Roberto has experience in Physics and Applied Mathematics. His research concerns the applications of nonlinear dynamics in population biology, theoretical ecology and epidemiology.
Wirichada Pan-Ngum
Regional Lead – Asia
Wirichada Pan-Ngum’s research involves using a mixed approach, including modelling and field surveys, to gain a better understanding of transmission routes of zoonotic diseases and the Human-Animal-Ecosystems interface. In addition to her work at MORU, Wirichada is an assistant professor in the Department of Tropical Hygiene, Faculty of Tropical Medicine at Mahidol University. She teaches biostatistics and mathematical modelling. In addition, she serves as a project advisor for postgraduates on the Tropical Medicine and Biomedical and Health Information courses.
Dr Sheetal Silal
Regional Lead – Africa
Sheetal is a research fellow at the University of Cape Town. Her primary area of research is mathematical modelling of infectious diseases. Her research focuses on using mathematics and statistics to model the control and elimination of malaria and other infectious diseases in South Africa, sub-Saharan Africa and the Asia Pacific region. Sheetal leads the Modelling and Simulation Hub, Africa (MASHA), a group that facilitates training and capacity building in mathematical modelling in Africa and coordinates African-related modelling projects. She is also an honorary visiting research fellow in Tropical Disease Modelling at the Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University.
Ainura Moldokmatova
Project Management
Ainura is a member of the Oxford Modelling Group for Global Health (OMGH). Before joining the group she worked for HIV and TB health programs in the Central Asian Region, where she coordinated research and monitoring activities. She holds a Master’s in International Health and Tropical Medicine from the University of Oxford and a Master’s in Social Research from the University of Edinburgh. Her research interests focus on mathematical modelling, behavioural studies, and health systems and policy research. In the CoMo Consortium, Ainura helps with overall management of activities and communication and supports the modelling for the Kyrgyzstan country team.
Tracy Evans
Communications Officer
Tracy has over 20 years’ experience of delivering strategic integrated marketing and communications activities and programmes for global brands. As Communications Officer for the CoMo Consortium, Tracy leads communications activity, both on and offline, and works with the team to drive and deliver the outreach and dissemination activities, engaging both in-country experts and policymakers and translating findings from the consortium into learnings that can be used for policy decision making.