Polly Wallace

Dr. Polly Wallace is an epidemiologist at the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health (NCEPH) within the Australian National University. She holds a PhD from ANU, complemented by a Master of Applied Epidemiology and a BA from the University of Canberra. Her career spans humanitarian work in developing countries and outbreak response, including two years in Liberia during the Ebola crisis and contributions to Australia’s COVID-19 response with WHO, Aspen Medical, and the Australian Department of Health.

• Affiliations: Department of Applied Epidemiology, NCEPH, Australian National University
• Academic Rank: Researcher
• Location: Building 62, Room 2.05

Wallace’s research focuses on community engagement in low-middle income countries, particularly through community-based participatory research. Her PhD work in Sri Lanka addressed intimate partner violence and substance misuse via preschool-based interventions, reflecting her interests in social epidemiology, public health surveillance, and infectious disease response. She has also explored pandemic preparedness and health systems resilience.

Her recent publications examine data visualization tools in outbreak response, community health worker roles in health security, and trial protocols for violence prevention. Supervised students include Dr. Ana Anau Ki Muli Mahe. She has been involved in projects like the Preschool Intervention Study in Sri Lanka and WHO’s Pacific Evidence for Informed Policies program.