Sharifa Nasreen

Dr. Sharifa Nasreen serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the School of Public Health, SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University. A medical epidemiologist with extensive experience in both low- and high-income country settings, her work bridges academic research with practical public health applications across diverse global contexts.

Dr. Nasreen earned her MD from the University of Dhaka, her MPH from BRAC University, and her PhD from the University of Western Ontario. She completed her Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the University of Toronto's Dalla Lana School of Public Health, where she focused on epidemiology of invasive pneumococcal diseases and later the safety and effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines using health administrative data.

Her research primarily centers on the epidemiology of diseases of public health importance, with special emphasis on infectious diseases and vaccine-preventable conditions. Early in her career, she conducted significant field research in Bangladesh examining avian influenza transmission among live bird market workers and developing respiratory hygiene interventions. Her work included evaluations of handwashing promotion to reduce neonatal morbidity and mortality, earning her the Novartis Vaccines Award for Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases in 2012. More recently, her research has shifted toward sophisticated analyses of vaccine effectiveness and safety using Canadian health administrative data through the Canadian Immunization Research Network (CIRN).

Dr. Nasreen's publication record demonstrates a consistent trajectory from field epidemiology to advanced vaccine evaluation methodologies. Her recent work examines nuanced aspects of vaccine performance including durability of protection from newer formulations, comparative risks of adverse events following vaccination versus infection, and indirect effects of vaccination programs across populations. Her research spans both high-impact journals like BMJ, Nature Microbiology, and JAMA Network Open, and practical applications informing global health policy.

• Novartis Vaccines Award for Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases at the International Congress on Infectious Diseases in 2012

Dr. Nasreen serves as a Moderator for the Program for Monitoring Emerging Diseases (ProMED), reporting infectious disease outbreaks in South Asia. She contributes to vaccine policy development as an External Expert Member of the Pediatric Pneumococcal Working Group of the Canadian National Advisory Committee on Immunization (NACI) and serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition. Her impactful research has resulted in numerous peer-reviewed publications that directly inform public health practice and policy decisions.

Through her work with ProMED and NACI, Dr. Nasreen actively contributes to global infectious disease surveillance and vaccine policy development. Her research bridges traditional infectious disease epidemiology with modern vaccine evaluation methods, maintaining a consistent focus on practical applications for public health policy in both domestic and international contexts.