Research Projects
I have been involved in a variety of research projects, focusing on public health and global health issues. My work has ranged from investigating the impact of peer-led HIV self-testing in Ethiopia to examining the social and emotional well-being of culturally and linguistically diverse children in Australia. I have also explored the impact of COVID-19 on marginalized populations and the role of political and institutional factors in shaping pandemic responses. My research often involves mixed methods approaches, including quantitative and qualitative methods, to gain a comprehensive understanding of complex health issues.
Projects
HIV & other STI's
Impact of Peer-led HIV-self testing on the HIV care continuum in Ethiopia: A cluster randomized trial and economic evaluation of Teach-Test-Link-Trace model (TTLT) trial (2020-2024)
This is a 5-year NHMRC funded project which investigates how clinical- and cost-effective is HIV peer educators led HIV-self testing in improving HIV counselling (Teach) and testing uptake (Test), linking to care and treatment (Link), and retention in care and trace if patients lost from care and treatment (Trace), namely TTLT model. Cluster randomized trial was used to employ the project.
- Role: Chief investigator and sole applicant
- Project duration: 2020-2024
- Status: Ongoing
Investigating increasing gonorrhoea transmission, the role of dating apps and the potential lessons for HIV and other sexually transmissible diseases
This 2-year Flinders Foundation (Australia) funded project undertook epidemiological analyses of gonorrhoea notification data for South Australia (SA) and Victoria (Vic) for the period 2012-2019 to investigating incidence, re-infections, antibiotic resistance, HIV co-infection, risk factors and spatial location; estimated the economic burden of gonococcal infection in SA and Vic and projections for increased cost associated with current epidemiological trends; and conducted in-depth qualitative interviews with young people from high and low SES areas, exploring their use of dating apps such as Tinder and how this might be shaping their sexual behaviour.
- Role: Co-CI; co-led the quantitative project
- Project duration: 2020-2021
- Status: Completed
Research outputs: Coming soon
Conflict & Health
Conflict-related vicarious trauma among Tigrayan diaspora in Australian
This 1-year Torrens University Australia funded project aims to investigate the [CMD] status of Tigrayans living in Australia following the devastating conflict back home in Tigray, North Ethiopia. The war in Tigray caused appalling humanitarian crisis including 2 million IDPs, intentional damaged to 70-80% health facilities and targeted attack of health personnel, de facto blockade and medical siege, and heinous crimes of rape. This impacts the mental wellbeing of Tigrayans living in and outside Tigray, and the current nation-wide project targeted the diaspora population living in Australia.
- Role: Chief Investigator
- Project duration: 2023-2024
- Status: Completed
Research outputs:
- Prevalence of vicarious trauma, depression, anxiety, stress, post-traumatic stress disorder, and resilience among the Tigrayan diaspora in Australia: A nation-wide cross-sectional study following the Tigray conflict
Migration & Health
Social and emotional wellbeing of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) children and young people in South Australia
This is a 2-year project funded by The Hospital Research Foundation (Australia) aimed to explore how we can improve social and emotional wellbeing (SEWB) for CALD children and adolescents aged 12-25 years old, co-design CALD-youth contextualised primary prevention interventions to improve youth SEWB, trial the developed primary interventions for acceptability with our partner organisations, with plans to evaluate for cost and effectiveness in future projects in South Australia.
- Role: Co-Principal Investigator (Co-PI), lead the quantitative aspect of the project
- Project duration: 2023-2025
- Status: Ongoing
Research outputs: Coming soon.
Health Needs Assessment of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) population in South Australia
The Health Needs Assessment (HNA) is a 2-year commissioned project by Adelaide Primary Health Network (Adelaide PHN) aims to assess the composition and characteristics of CALD populations; determinants of health, access and inequities in CALD populations; and challenges and opportunities for improvement of program and service delivery for CALD populations. Mixed methods approach comprising, literature review, quantitative and qualitative methodologies were applied to employ the HNA.
- Role: Co- CI, lead the quantitative aspect of the project
- Project duration: 2023-2024
- Status: Completed
Research outputs: Coming soon
Social distancing, social isolation and loneliness – the unintended consequences of covid-19 response measures on refugees from African backgrounds
This 2-year Flinders Foundation (Australia) funded project qualitatively explored the impact of COVID-19, especially related to social distancing, isolation and loneliness on mental health; resilience mechanisms including how they are finding solutions that are culturally relevant to them; and alternative ways that can assist African and similar populations to stay connected and sustain their health and wellbeing.
- Role: Associate investigator
- Project duration: 2020-2021
- Status: Completed
Research outputs:
- Strategies to improve access to mental health services: Perspectives of African migrants and service providers in South Australia
- Post-Migration Stressors and Mental Health for African Migrants in South Australia: A Qualitative Study
- Migrants and Service Providers’ Perspectives of Barriers to Accessing Mental Health Services in South Australia: A Case of African Migrants with a Refugee Background in South Australia
Do PAW (Punching above/below weight) countries respond better to pandemic?
This 1-year World Bank funded project examined how ideas, interests, and institutions shape political reactions and intersectoral actions in the COVID-19 pandemic through comparative qualitative case study approach, involving 16 countries case studies of political and institutional responses in 16 nations (Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Ethiopia, India, NZ, Nigeria, Peru, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, UK, US).
Research outputs:
PAW (Punching above/below weight) countries and life expectancy
This 2-year Flinders Foundation (Australia) funded project examined the relationship between a nation’s wealth and health equity. We use the World Bank to extract GDP per capita, and World Health Organisation’s Health Equity Monitor database to extract infant mortality rate, neonatal mortality rate, and under-five mortality rate for 83 low- and middle- income countries.
Research outputs:
One Health approach to disasters prevention and management in Southwest Ethiopia
Description: This is a One Health in Central and East Africa (OCHEA) project funded by International Red Cross (IRC) in 2014. The project assessed: (a) knowledge and experiences of previous pesticide exposure, and related health problems among farmers who use irrigation; (b) awareness level of rural communities about hazards and their perceived vulnerability to cope with disasters; and (c) the perceived knowledge, experiences and training needs of health professionals regarding disasters, their prevention and management in Southwest Ethiopia.
Research outputs: