Public Health Foundation of India

I am an academic researcher with expertise in Occupational therapy, Public Health, disability and Epidemiology. I am an Early Career Fellow in clinical and public health for the DBT – Wellcome Trust (India Alliance) evaluating the effectiveness of a Technology-enabled educational intervention for stroke survivors in India through a clinical trial. I am also a visiting fellow for the International Centre for Evidence in Disability at LSHTM. I currently co-investigate a project funded by MRC-UK to develop a stroke caregiver intervention for strengthening health system in Malaysia and also a NIHR Funded research related to promoting Universal Health Coverage for stroke survivors in South Africa.

I am also a systematic reviewer and I contribute to the Cochrane Collaboration and Cochrane India Network. I primarily teach health system strengthening and policy development, especially in the area of disability and Non-communicable diseases. I provide technical support to the department of disability in Telangana State of India. I also contribute to the editorial board of the Indian Journal of OT and the British Journal of OT. I contribute as a member of the International Networking Group of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine’s task force for refugees.

I have an undergraduate degree from the Tamilnadu Dr MGR Medical University in Occupational therapy, a post-graduate degree from SRM University in Public health, specializing in Health programme management and PhD from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM). I had worked as a clinician, academician and researcher since 2003 in India, Nepal and also in the U.K.

My main research interest is mainstreaming disability in health and development with a particular focus on low and middle income countries and neuro-psychiatric conditions. I am committed to achieve this by developing and strengthening rehabilitation systems and policies for people with disabilities, particularly in low and middle income countries.