Dr Md Saiful Islam
PhD in Public Health, UNSW, Australia
Master of Public Health in Epidemiology and Quantitative Methods, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Master of Social Science in Sociology, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh
Bachelor of Social Science in Sociology, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh
Dr. Md Saiful Islam is an infectious disease social epidemiologist and lecturer at the School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney. His research and teaching focus on emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, infectious disease surveillance (including wastewater and environmental surveillance), One Health, zoonotic diseases, epidemic preparedness and response, infection prevention and control, and antimicrobial resistance. His work integrates epidemiology with social and behavioural scienc...
Dr. Md Saiful Islam is an infectious disease social epidemiologist and lecturer at the School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney. His research and teaching focus on emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, infectious disease surveillance (including wastewater and environmental surveillance), One Health, zoonotic diseases, epidemic preparedness and response, infection prevention and control, and antimicrobial resistance. His work integrates epidemiology with social and behavioural sciences to understand disease transmission pathways, strengthen epidemic preparedness, and inform public health interventions.
Dr. Islam earned his PhD in Public Health from UNSW, where his research on tuberculosis infection prevention and control policies in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) earned him the Dean’s Award for Outstanding PhD Thesis. He completed postdoctoral training in infectious diseases and immunisation at the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, focusing on COVID-19 contact tracing and quarantine policies in the Indo-Pacific region.
With 18 years of research experience, Dr. Islam has led and contributed to projects across Australia, Southeast Asia, the Pacific, and Africa, investigating social and behavioural drivers of disease emergence and prevention strategies. His current research includes:
- Avian influenza spillover risk in Australia
- Wastewater-based surveillance for rapid Mpox detection and response in New South Wales
- Nipah virus and anthrax transmission dynamics in Bangladesh
- Antimicrobial resistance and stewardship
Dr. Islam has authored over 75 peer-reviewed publications in high-impact journals, including Emerging Infectious Diseases, Clinical Infectious Diseases, and The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. He has secured competitive funding as Principal Investigator and Co-Investigator, with grants from the Triple I Seed Grant, Australian Society for Microbiology, ESCMID, Sabin Vaccine Institute, Grand Challenges Canada, the Asian Development Bank, and the US CDC.
As an internationally recognised expert, Dr. Islam serves as an advisory group member of the Human Spillover and Emerging Disease Scanning (HASEDS) group for the Australian government. He is a former ambassador for the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America and an invited reviewer for global funding bodies such as CEPI. Additionally, he is co-chair of the Early Career Researcher (ECR) Committee for the Council of Academic Public Health Institutions Australia (CAPHIA).
- Publications
- Grants
- Research Activities
- Teaching and Supervision
- 2023-2024: Exploring factors affecting vaccine uptake and acceptance among zero-dose children, Sabin Vaccine Institute (Washington D.C., District of Columbia, US). URL: https://www.vaccineacceptance.org/operationalizing-of-the-who-besd-framework/, opens in a new window
- 30/06/2018-28/02/2021: Making the invisible visible: saving brains via lead-free districts in Bangladesh, Grand Challenges Canada, Bold Ideas with Big Impact. URL: https://www.grandchallenges.ca/grantee-stars/1810-20755/
Key Research Activities and Collaborations
Infection Prevention & Control (IPC) and Antimicrobial Stewardship
- Strengthening the function of Infection Prevention & Control and Antimicrobial Stewardship committees in tertiary care hospitals in Bangladesh
- Piloting Health Care Associated Infections (HAI) surveillance in selected tertiary care hospitals of Bangladesh
- Surveillance and outbreak investigations for emerging infectious diseases
- Piloting infection control interventions for severe infections spread by the respiratory route
Antibiotic Use and Resistance
- Antibiotic Use and Surgical Sites Infections among C-Section and Abdominal Surgery Patients in Low-Resource Healthcare Settings: An observational study
- Use of antibiotics in commercial cattle, poultry, and fisheries in Bangladesh
- among family caregivers (FCGs) in some selected district hospitals in Bangladesh
Vaccination and Public Health
- Exploring the burden and factors affecting vaccine uptake and acceptance amongst zero-dose children and women using the WHO behavioral and social drivers (BeSD) framework in Bangladesh
- Making the invisible visible: saving brains via lead-free districts in Bangladesh
Pandemic preparedness and response
- COVID-19–Related Infodemic and Its Impact on Public Health
- COVID-19 vaccine rumors and conspiracy theories and its impact
- Rapid formative assessment for new and routine vaccines and COVID-19 vaccine introduction – caregiver survey and providers survey in seven Pacific Island countries
- COVID-19 contact tracing and quarantine policies in the Indo-Pacific Region
- Assessing the burden of laboratory-confirmed influenza
Zoonotic and Emerging Pathogens
- Social and Behavioral Drivers of Emerging Pathogens Spillover from Animals to Human
- Bangladesh-Myanmar Cross Border Surveillance for Zoonotic Diseases
- Investigations of anthrax outbreaks and risk factors for anthrax in humans and domestic animals in Bangladesh
- Poultry rearing practices and the risk of Avian Influenza transmission in humans
- Reducing the risk of Nipah virus transmission from patients to caregivers
- Nipah virus transmission from date palm saps and traditional liquor
Tuberculosis
- Reducing Tuberculosis infection among healthcare workers in tertiary care teaching hospitals through rapid identification and cohorts of suspected tuberculosis cases
- Tuberculosis infection control practices and the risk of latent tuberculosis infection among healthcare workers in Bangladeshi hospitals
Child Health and Mortality
- Child Health and Mortality Prevention Surveillance (CHAMPS)-Ongoing
- Piloting postmortem specimen collection for diagnosing the cause of death in a Bangladeshi Medical College Hospital
My Research Supervision
Md Ariful Islam- Post-discharge mortality among patients hospitalized with severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) in Bangladesh
Philippa McDermid-Enhancing patient and visitor hand hygiene to reduce healthcare-associated infections
My Teaching
Convener
PHCM 2005- Principles of Prevention and Public Health Surveillance. https://www.handbook.unsw.edu.au/undergraduate/courses/2024/PHCM2005?year=2024
Co-convennor
PHCM9788-Outbreak Investigation & Intelligence . https://www.handbook.unsw.edu.au/postgraduate/courses/2023/PHCM9788