January 23, 2014
Global Medicines Program Welcomes Dr. Joseph Babigumira as New Faculty
The Global Medicines Program is pleased to welcome Dr. Joseph Babigumira, MBChB, MS, PhD, as Assistant Professor in the Department of Global Health, University of Washington. Originally from Uganda where he received his medical training, Dr. Babigumira received a M.S. in Health Services Research in 2006 from Case Western Reserve University as a Fogarty International Program trainee. He then started his PhD training in the Pharmaceutical Outcomes Research and Policy Program at the University of Washington, School of Pharmacy. During his graduate studies at the UW, Joseph worked on the cost‐effectiveness of measles elimination and eradication, global strategy activities for pharmacovigilance, conducted and published medical-pharmacy task-shifting work with the Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI), Kampala, Uganda, and worked with faculty on a variety of other medicines-related research projects. He successfully defended his doctoral dissertation, entitled: Healthcare Costs of Induced Abortion and Potential Cost-Effectiveness of Increasing Contraceptive Coverage in Uganda in 2011. His doctoral dissertation was supported by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation through the Institute of International Education. Prior to his studies at the UW, he had positions with EPICENTRE, Medécins Sans Frontières (MSF) and with Mbarara University. Joseph is delighted to start his academic career with the Global Medicines Program.
“Our Global Medicines Program and UW are fortunate to recruit a young researcher of Joseph’s caliber and promise, combining clinical experience with both economic evaluation skills and a wide range of medicines and health policy interests,” remarked Dr. Lou Garrison, his dissertation supervisor and Co-Director of the Global Medicines Program.” Dr. Babigumira’s research interest is in improving access to safe and cost-effective diagnostic technologies, medicines, and healthcare delivery platforms in low-income countries. In particular, he is involved in studying the status of health technology assessment in low-income countries, the cost-effectiveness and scale-up of rapid diagnostic tests for malaria, the cost-effectiveness of measles and rubella eradication efforts, the economic and health impact of unsafe abortions, the interface between health workforce shortages and low contraceptive coverage in poor countries, and the diffusion and sustainability of programs to supply modern contraceptives to women who need them. He has previously performed studies of the cost-effectiveness of programs to improve access to antiretroviral therapy and the economics of task shifting. Joseph is also interested in the impact and dynamics of spillover effects to the wider healthcare systems in low-income countries from heavily-funded disease areas such as HIV/AIDS and malaria. Joseph will be mentoring graduate students, continuing his distance learning teaching to the University of Nairobi HIV fellows, and teaching in one or more of his areas of interest and expertise. In April 2011, he presented at a conference in Entebbe, Uganda, titled “Preparing for the Future of HIV/AIDS in Africa: A Shared Responsibility. Domestication of IOM’s Report Recommendations by Ugandans,” co-sponsored by the Uganda National Academy of Sciences and the US Institute of Medicine.
