Dr. Alex Cook works on infectious disease modelling and statistics, including dengue, influenza and other respiratory pathogens, and on population modelling to assess the effect of evolving demographics on non-communicable disease such as diabetes, His multidisciplinary team brings together researchers from the fields of statistics, computational biology, computer engineering, mathematics, geography and environmental sciences.

Title of Talk

Academic-government collaboration in public health: with case studies in modelling and responding to COVID-19 in Singapore 

Abstract

In academia, it is quite common to claim in an abstract and non-specific way that the results “inform policy” or “are important for policy making”, without there having been any actual engagement with policy makers. Although the aims and expectations of academics and government officials differ, they can sometimes be aligned, making it possible for the two sides to work effectively together to tackle societal problems. This requires effort from both parties. In Singapore, the we have developed an effective partnership between the Ministry of Health and the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, allowing our research to be designed around the needs of the Ministry, involving government officials in the research process, and allowing an avenue for research results to be communicated back to government and actually to inform policy. This has been particularly fruitful in the area of public health modelling, which is my area. In this talk, I will give examples of how we approach the collaboration between academics and policy makers in Singapore, and some of the lessons we have learned along the way.

Dr. Hafiz joined the School of Mathematical Sciences, USM as a lecturer in 2016. He is a researcher working in the field of Mathematical Modelling. His research uses continuation and simulation methods to improve our predictions of species geographic distributions in nature. He uses the techniques from differential equations, dynamical systems, numerical continuation and stochastic processes to develop mathematical and computational tools to answer a range of biologically inspired questions.

Title of Talk 

Mathematical Modelling of Eco-Epidemiology: A Research Journey through Selective Insights 

Abstract 

Eco-epidemiology (the interdisciplinary field that investigates the rich dynamics between ecological systems and infectious diseases) holds significant importance in understanding and mitigating the spread and impact of epidemics on ecological communities. Mathematical modeling has emerged as an invaluable tool in comprehending the complexities of these interactions and guiding effective decision-making and control processes. This plenary talk aims to explore a selection of mathematical models employed in eco-epidemiology and highlight some intriguing contributions to unraveling the underlying biological mechanisms. It is hoped that this sharing will inspire researchers and policymakers to embrace mathematical modeling as a powerful tool to better understand, predict and control the spread of infectious diseases, together with promoting the maintenance of species biodiversity in our natural ecosystems. Understanding the strengths and limitations of these models is crucial for leveraging their potential to inform evidence-based interventions and improve our public health responses.