The Sigma Theta Tau International Honour Society of Nursing has conferred AKU alumni, Drs Zohra Lassi and Rehana Abdus Salam, with the 2021 Episteme Award.
Established in 1989, the award is supported by the Baxter International Foundation and is conferred upon individuals or teams for outstanding nursing research resulting in breakthrough developments in healthcare outcomes, especially for underprivileged populations.
Dr Salam and Dr Lassi have been recognised for their commitment and contribution to maternal and newborn research, and evidence synthesis in low and middle-income countries, specifically in terms of nutrition – an area of passion and expertise for both nurse researchers. Their study on
effective interventions to address maternal and child malnutrition was published in the Lancet in May 2021.
“Nutrition for mothers and children is one of the main contributing factors to enduring health particularly in developing countries,” said Dr Zohra Lassi who currently serves as a research fellow at the University of Adelaide, Australia. “That’s why it is a predominant area of my research work.”
“Currently, I am focusing on the neglected age group of 10-19 years and quantifying the experiences of food insecurity and its relationship with broader health outcomes in vulnerable children and adolescents especially from disadvantaged settings of a high-income country." Dr Lassi added.
Dr Salam is currently working as a project manager at the Centre of Research Excellence at the Melanoma Institute in Australia.
Dr Salam said: “My research work revolves around identifying evidence-based interventions to improve maternal and child health. Implementing these evidence-based interventions at scale especially in disadvantaged settings have the potential to reduce the burden of mortality and morbidity.”
Both Dr Lassi and Dr Salam hold an undergraduate degree from Aga Khan University’s School of Nursing and Midwifery as well as a Master of Science in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from AKU’s Medical College.
The awards are expected to be conferred at Sigma’s 46th Biennial Convention in Indianapolis, USA, on November 7, 2021, where the two will also serve as keynote speakers.
