Shazra Abbas

Dr. Shazra Abbas is a Senior Technical Advisor and public health researcher affiliated with the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health at the University of Melbourne. Her work focuses on maternal and newborn health, communicable/non-communicable disease control, and health systems strengthening. She has collaborated with global organizations like UNICEF, WHO, and UNDP, contributing to national policies in low/middle-income countries (LMICs). With over 15 years of experience, Dr. Abbas has designed healthcare initiatives, trained healthcare workers in EmOC, SRH, and clinical guidelines, and evaluated primary healthcare responses in South Asia and Africa.

Her research interests encompass maternal mental health, HIV/SRH service access, drug-resistant TB treatment adherence, and health system resilience. She has expertise in practice theory analyses and has conducted cross-sectional surveys on healthcare experiences in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. Dr. Abbas also holds clinical qualifications as an obstetrician and gynaecologist, with field experience spanning tertiary hospitals to village health centers.

Notable contributions include co-developing national SRH guidelines and pioneering training programs for healthcare workers in emergency preparedness. Her work bridges clinical practice, global health policy, and grassroots implementation, emphasizing equity in healthcare access across diverse cultural contexts.