Physician Epidemiologist. Global Health Strategist.

Dr Banda Khalifa

MD · MPH · MBA Evidence into action

Strategic judgment for science, policy & institutional action.

Trusted across global health, academia & policy

A cross-sector practice shaped by clinical service, epidemiology, emergency preparedness, institutional advising, and public communication.

World Health Organization Johns Hopkins United Nations Africa CDC Tony Blair Institute Baltimore City Health Gates Foundation Jhpiego

Education & Training

Training across disciplines.

Expected 2026

PhD

Epidemiology (Candidate)

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Certificates in Vaccine Science & Policy and Clinical Trials

MPH

Epidemiology & Biostatistics

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Certificate in Pharmacoepidemiology & Drug Safety · Sommer Scholar

MBA

Health Technology & Leadership

Johns Hopkins Carey Business School

Beta Gamma Sigma honor society

MD

Medicine & Surgery

University of Ghana School of Medicine & Dentistry

Core expertise

Seven pillars of impact.

A practice that connects disease intelligence, preparedness, policy, AI, leadership development, and communication.

01 Disease intelligence

Infectious Disease Epidemiology

Rigorous epidemiologic methods clarify risk, burden, surveillance needs, and response priorities.

02 Institutional readiness

Global Health Security

Health security work connects surveillance, coordination, risk communication, and institutional resilience.

03 Response systems

Emergency Preparedness & Response

Preparedness becomes practical through response architecture, operating cadence, decision rights, and trusted public communication.

04 Policy into delivery

Vaccine Policy & Health Systems

Vaccine evidence, access questions, and delivery systems become usable policy choices.

05 Responsible intelligence

AI for Health

Applied AI becomes useful when it is connected to evidence, equity, workflow, governance, and real health system decisions.

06 Next-generation capacity

Leadership & Career Development

Mentorship helps students and emerging professionals make clearer decisions about training, careers, and leadership.

07 Evidence made clear

Strategic Scientific Communication

Complex evidence becomes language that leaders, institutions, students, and public audiences can use.

A field-tested arc

From service to strategy.

Physician first.

Clinical training keeps his public health work close to patients, frontline teams, and decisions made under pressure.

Evidence builder.

At Johns Hopkins, his work spans epidemiology, vaccine policy, evidence synthesis, and the analytical discipline institutions need when stakes are high.

Health security advisor.

Through WHO AFRO EPR-TAG and related advisory work, he contributes to preparedness, surveillance, response coordination, and risk communication.

Public communicator and mentor.

Through speaking, writing, podcasting, and mentorship, he helps translate complex health questions into language people can use.

Research & advisory work

Science for action.

His research and advisory work connects health security, vaccine policy, infectious disease epidemiology, and health systems strengthening.

Executive advisory

Cross-sector judgment for public health strategy.

Advisory and leadership work across emergency preparedness, vaccine implementation, public health operations, and health systems strategy.

Publication focus

Global Health Security Index and pandemic response

Research questioning whether preparedness indices predict COVID-19 vaccine rollout and pandemic response performance.

Current work

Mpox epidemiology and surveillance

Protocol, data, ethics, and field-site work connected to multi-country surveillance and response questions.

African Member States served through WHO regional advisory scope.

10+

Peer-reviewed publications in global health, epidemiology, and policy journals.

View Selected Publications Google Scholar

Science, policy & execution

Preparedness is a decision system.

Dr Khalifa works with teams on preparedness, decision-making, and response systems that have to hold under pressure.

Speaking & media

A voice for high-stakes moments.

Academic talks, policy forums, advisory settings, creator platforms, and public-facing media share one discipline: evidence made clear for the room.

Speaking

Universities, panels, and technical forums

Preparedness, health systems, science communication, vaccine delivery, and leadership.

Policy dialogue

Africa-focused health and leadership conversations

The conversation pairs technical detail with strategy, equity, and institutional possibility.

Publication Meridian Letters

Original essays and conversation for readers who care about health, institutions, leadership, technology, and public life.

Visit Meridian Letters

Podcast The Scholars Table

Conversation-driven media on health, systems, leadership, and the questions shaping professional and public life.

View media

Mentorship & creator platform

Capacity beyond the room.

Dr Khalifa's mentoring, writing, and public communication help emerging professionals make better decisions about training, careers, leadership, and public health work.

Favikon recognition #1

Worldwide

Public Health & Epidemiology

Worldwide #3

Health & Medicine

Favikon ranking screenshot showing Banda Khalifa ranked number three worldwide in health and medicine

Ghana #1

Health & Medicine

Favikon ranking screenshot showing Banda Khalifa ranked number one in Ghana

Selected affiliations

Institutional experience.

01 Academic

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Doctoral scholarship, epidemiology training, public health leadership, and applied research at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

02 Regional advisory

World Health Organization, African Region

Technical advisory work across preparedness, surveillance, emergency response, risk communication, and regional health security.

03 Emergency response

United Nations peacekeeping medical operations

Front-line medical operations, infection prevention, evacuation coordination, and crisis leadership in complex field settings.

04 Implementation

Tony Blair Institute for Global Change

Vaccine delivery strategy and cross-sector coordination supporting national implementation during the COVID-19 response.

05 Public health operations

Baltimore City Health Department

Citywide response operations, contact tracing systems, data tracking, and community outreach under operational pressure.

06 Research partnership

Africa CDC and World Bank mpox study

Multi-country surveillance research, protocol development, ethics workflows, data systems, and field-site coordination.

Let's work together

Bring judgment into the room.

Available for speaking, guest lectures, panels, advisory dialogue, research collaboration, media, and strategic scientific engagement.

Advisory or collaboration Start a private conversation Panels, lectures, media Invite Dr Khalifa to speak Professional network Connect on LinkedIn