Wendy O’Meara
Dr. Wendy O’Meara is a Professor of Medicine and Global Health at Duke University, visiting professor at Moi University, and the Deputy Director of the Duke Global Health Institute.
Diana Menya
Dr. Diana Menya is an Associate Professor at Moi University School of Public Health. She specializes in community-based approaches to important health problems.
Andrew Obala
Dr. Andrew Obala is a Senior Lecturer at Moi University in the Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology. He is a passionate parasitologist with expertise in medical entomology and malaria. Learn more.
Jeremiah Laktabai
Dr. Jeremiah Laktabai is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Family Medicine at Moi University and the Director of Population Health at AMPATH.
Judith Mangeni
Dr. Judith Mangeni is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics within the School of Public Health at Moi University.
Wendy O'Meara
Dr. Wendy O’Meara is a Professor of Medicine and Global Health at Duke University, visiting professor at Moi University, and the Deputy Director of the Duke Global Health Institute. She divides her time between the US and Kenya.
Dr. O’Meara’s group is working towards elucidating malaria transmission networks by identifying individual human-to-mosquito and mosquito-human transmission events through leveraging variability in key parasite genes (collaboration with Steve Taylor’s lab).
By tracking generations of infections from humans to mosquitoes, a clearer understanding of the reservoir of infection will be possible and interventions such as ivermectin and transmission blocking vaccines can be targeted to maximizes their effectiveness.
Dr. O’Meara’s team is also interested in improving rational drug use for suspected malaria fevers through expanding the use of diagnostic tools in the community, in the informal health sector, and in health facilities. It is estimated that only 20% of those buying antimalarials over-the-counter in the retail sector actually have malaria. Such overuse poses a significant threat to the continued efficacy of first-line antimalarials. Dr. O’Meara has conducted several randomized controlled trials in western Kenya to test interventions designed to improve the use of information from malaria diagnostic testing in order to target antimalarials to those with confirmed infection.
Dr. O’Meara also has experience in marrying innovative spatial techniques with epidemiologic outcomes. Recent work includes an analysis of health systems factors that contribute to early childhood mortality in sub-Saharan Africa and the impact of malaria prevention on birth outcomes.
Diana Menya
Dr. Diana Menya is an Associate Professor at Moi University School of Public Health. She specializes in community-based approaches to important health problems. In addition to malaria, she has expertise in the epidemiology of esophageal cancer in rural Kenya.
Andrew Obala
Dr. Andrew Obala is a Senior Lecturer at Moi University in the Department of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology. He is a passionate parasitologist with expertise in medical entomology and malaria and overseas our studies in Webuye and Turkana.
Jeremiah Laktabai
Dr. Jeremiah Laktabai is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Family Medicine at Moi University and the Director of Population Health at AMPATH. His main areas of research interest are malaria diagnosis and treatment, and community-based health insurance.
Judith Mangeni
Dr. Judith Mangeni is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics within the School of Public Health at Moi University. Her research interests are malaria epidemiology, malaria infection during pregnancy, malaria behavior change communication strategies, and routine testing for HIV in clinical settings.
