Dr. Falgunee Parekh is an infectious disease expert. She is the Founder and Principal Scientist of EpiPointe, a small business focused on developing epidemiology solutions to combat global infectious diseases. Dr. Falgunee’s experience in the development and implementation of clinical research studies spans across 18 years and over several locations worldwide, including South Asia, South America, West Africa, and East Africa. In addition to her work as EpiPointe’s Principal Scientist, Dr. Falgunee has also been serving as Treasurer for the Global Health Security Agenda Consortium since March 2019.

 

Dr. Falgunee joins me today to discuss the impact of health research on communities and individuals. She shares her background and experiences of doing field research in Peru on malaria in pregnancies and shares the profound insights she realized while in the field. She compares the similarities of Zika and COVID-19 and discusses how testing, surveillance, and contact tracing can help scientists understand the global pandemic. She also shares her experiences as a woman of color in a S.T.E.M. career and underscores the power of raising awareness about diseases and public health in communities.

 

 

 

“When you have good solutions to health, it impacts socio-economic wellbeing, individuals, and communities.” - Dr. Falgunee Parekh

 

 

 

Today on When She Founded:

 

• Falgunee’s background and what inspired her to go down the road of epidemiology and public health
• The meaning of epidemiology and why it matters
• Falgunee’s experience with researching the epidemiology of malaria in Peru
• The impact of raising awareness in the fight against infectious diseases
• What made Dr. Falgunee decide to create her own company
• The lack of women of color in global health and pharmaceutical industries
• What it’s like to work as a woman of color in epidemiology and R&D
• Falgunee’s work on a Zika vaccine trial and the similarities between the epidemiology of Zika and COVID-19
• The importance of testing, surveillance, and contact tracing in the fight against COVID-19 and other infectious diseases
• EpiPointe’s global survey on non-hospitalized COVID-19 cases
• The power of science communication in managing a pandemic
• Falgunee’s vision for EpiPointe and why they’re choosing to stay as a small business

 

 

Connect with Dr. Falgunee Parekh

 

• EpiPointe
• EpiPointe on Facebook
• EpiPointe on LinkedIn
• Falgunee Parekh on LinkedIn

 

 

 

 

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