Health Spotlight ECR Network
Johanna Carolina Molina-Tabares
Department: School of Life Sciences and School of Medicine (University of Leicester)
I am a biologist and microbiologist PhD student with a strong interest in medical entomology and vector-borne diseases. interdisciplinary approaches to understand mosquito ecology, surveillance and vector control.
My background includes work on Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) programmes in Ecuador funded by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), including training at Moscamed (Brazil), where I worked on irradiation dose assays, mass rearing and mosquito marking. I have also conducted entomological surveillance of mosquitoes and biting midges using multiple trapping methods, alongside taxonomic identification and molecular analyses. My work contributed to the early detection of Aedes aegypti, enabling rapid response by local authorities to limit its spread in this ecosystem.
Keywords: Vector surveillance, molecular diagnostics, qPCR, environmental DNA (eDNA), mosquito ecology, species distribution modelling, spatial analysis, field epidemiology, One Health.
More information: ORCID, Warwick Profile
Abdulaziz Alrubayyi
Department: Warwick Medical School / Warwick Applied Health
Abdulaziz is a PhD candidate in Warwick Applied Health and a qualified paramedic with a particular interest in developing, evaluating, and implementing digital health technologies to improve care and outcomes in prehospital and primary care settings. His research focuses on point-of-care diagnostics, including point-of-care tests, wearable sensors, and smartphone-based tools, for the early detection and management of noncommunicable diseases. His work spans Saudi Arabia, the UK, and the Global South, aiming to make early diagnosis and clinical decision-making more accessible in resource-limited and emergency care settings.
Keywords: Decision-Analytic Modelling, Machine Learning, Quantitative Methods, Evidence Synthesis.
More information: ORCID
Archibong Bassey
Department: Warwick Medical School
Archibong is a PhD Candidate within Warwick Applied Health, Warwick Medical School. His doctoral research examines how young citizens participate in shaping policies, services, and programmes within the HIV response in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa. Archibong is a public health professional and interdisciplinary researcher with interests and work around youth participation, HIV, sexual and reproductive health and rights, global health and human rights, health policy and systems research, bioethics, mental health. He is particularly passionate about addressing inequalities and disparities affecting vulnerable and underserved populations.
Keywords: Qualitative research, Mixed methods research, Evidence synthesis, Participatory approaches, Policy analysis, Interviews, Focus groups, Workshops.
Sina Saffaran
Department: School of Engineering
My research focuses on developing computational tools to improve and personalise respiratory support for critically ill patients. I use mathematical and computational models of the heart and lungs to create digital twins of individual patients, allowing us to better understand how patients respond to treatments such as mechanical ventilation. I also use artificial intelligence and machine learning to predict treatment outcomes and identify patients at risk of deterioration. By combining physiological modelling, digital twins, AI and control engineering, my research aims to support clinical decision-making, optimise respiratory support, and ultimately make treatment safer and more personalised for critically ill patients.
Keywords: Digital twins, cardiopulmonary modelling, mathematical modelling, computational modelling, mechanical ventilation, artificial intelligence, machine learning, physiological modelling.
Lauren Ketteridge
Department: School of Engineering
Lauren Ketteridge is a clinical physiologist and PhD student whose work focuses on advancing trauma care and resuscitation in austere environments.
She specialises in building computational models to investigate pharmacological and ventilatory strategies for treating complex blast injuries, toxic chemical inhalation, and other injuries associated with mass-casualty incidents.
Keywords: Computational modelling, pre-hospital care, primary blast lung injury, chemical lung injury, non-animal methods, new approach methodologies.
More information: ORCID
Panagiotis Tsakonas
Department: School of Engineering
I am a postdoctoral researcher specialising in mathematical and computational modelling of biological systems, with a strong methodological focus on parameter estimation, model identifiability, and data-driven experimental design.
My work lies at the interface of applied mathematics, control engineering, and synthetic biology, with the aim of developing rigorous, predictive models that can inform and accelerate experimental research in complex biological systems.
Keywords: Model calibration, Optimal experiment design, Identifiability analysis, Control systems engineering, Signal processing, AI/ML.