Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HE2RO)


Logo of HE2RO
HE2RO and its partner organizations have more than 15 years of experience in identifying, developing, and evaluating innovations aimed at improving the South African response to the HIV and TB epidemics in the setting of the world’s largest ARV roll-out in the epicenter of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. HE2RO has a proven track record of conducting research in the setting of the world’s largest ARV roll-out in the epicenter of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

HE2RO is one of the few organizations in South Africa with expertise in both health economics and epidemiologic outcomes evaluations and conducts rigorous, quantitative cost, cost-effectiveness, and epidemiological analysis of high priority questions, often at the direct request of the National Department of Health (NDoH) and other government agencies. HE2RO’s purpose is to conduct applied, policy- and program-relevant research and evaluation on issues of public health importance, and in particular on interventions to address HIV, TB, and related problems

HE2RO is currently conducting research across Africa (Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Uganda) through the EQUIP Health project.


Site Director

Dr. Jacqui MiotDr. Jacqui Miot, Division Director, Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Unit (HE2RO)
jmiot@heroza.org

Dr. Jacqui Miot, BPharm, PhD, joined HE2RO as Division Director in September 2017. She has worked in the field of health economics, evidence-based medicine and healthcare policy for over 20 years. Jacqui was previously a senior lecturer in the Division of Pharmacology in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Wits University as well as a health economics consultant to Department of Health, various healthcare companies and NGOs. She has also worked as a consultant in Tanzania. Prior to that she was Head of the Health Economics Unit at Discovery Health, the largest healthcare insurer in South Africa, providing support and expertise in building health economics and budget impact models. Her research focuses on costing and health economic models in medicine interventions with a particular interest in the non-communicable diseases and oncology. She has supervised a number of Masters and PhD students and will continue to provide mentorship in this capacity. Jacqui is Vice-chair of the Pricing Committee, Chair of the Pharmacoeconomics Task Team of the PC, member of the Gauteng Provincial PTC as well as the Chairperson of the Clinical Advisory Board of HQA and serves on the Editorial Guidelines Sub-Committee of the South African Medical Journal. Jacqui is currently on the Board of Trustees of CAMAF medical scheme and on the ExCo of PCMA (Pharmaceutical Care Management Association SA). She holds a Bachelor of Pharmacy degree from Rhodes University, South Africa and a PhD in Neuropharmacology in the Faculty of Medicine, London University.


Site Mentors

Dr. MaskewDr. Mhairi Maskew, Principal Researcher, Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HE2RO)
mmaskew@heroza.org

Dr. Mhairi Maskew, MBBCh, PhD, is a physician and epidemiologist. Mhairi has been involved in the management and analysis of large HIV treatment cohorts’ databases for more than 10 years. She joined the HE2RO team in 2010 and as a Principal Researcher, provides leadership to projects involving big data linkages. Mhairi has worked at Themba Lethu clinic, one of South Africa’s largest antiretroviral treatment sites. She also has an interest in HIV-related malignancies which she developed during her work in the hospital’s Oncology unit. She has explored the epidemiology of Kaposi Sarcoma and its etiologic virus, the Kaposi sarcoma Herpes-virus. Mhairi has been involved in randomised clinical trials investigating simplified clinical treatment algorithms for same-day ART treatment eligibility in South Africa. In addition, she was awarded a five-year R01 which resulted in the development of the first National HIV Cohort created from routinely collected laboratory data and some of the first national-level estimates of retention on ART robust to transfers, with a focus on adolescents. She was recently awarded a second R01 to further develop the lab-based National HIV Cohort to focus on pregnant women. Mhairi has mentored several Master’s level students and her work has been published in several international peer-reviewed journals including Lancet HIV, AIDS, JAIDS, Clinical Infectious Diseases and the International Journal of Epidemiology.

Dr. RathProf. Gesine Meyer-Rath, Research Associate Professor
gesine@bu.edu

Professor Gesine Meyer-Rath, MD, PhD, is a physician, health economist, and infectious disease modeller with fourteen years’ experience in economic evaluations of health care interventions. She is a Research Assistant Professor of International Health at the Boston University Center for Global Health & Development. She has been resident in South Africa since 2006, and joined HE2RO in 2009. Dr. Meyer-Rath’s research focus lies on modelling methods for economic evaluation, including infectious disease modelling and decision analysis, and translating research into recommendations for public policy. Most of her work has centered on providing recommendations and budgets based on economic analysis for the South African HIV Programme, including a well-used budget impact model for ART, the National ART Cost Model, work on optimising HIV testing modalities, and leading the modelling work on the South African HIV Investment Case. Before joining HE2RO, she worked in the Paediatrics Department of Charité University Hospital Berlin, with the CHOICE team of the World Health Organization, and as a researcher at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the Reproductive Health and HIV Research Unit of the University of the Witwatersrand (now Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Research Institute). She is the author of over 40 peer-reviewed articles and several book chapters on HIV economics. She holds an MD/PhD from Humboldt University and Free University, Berlin, Germany, and a PhD in Health Economics at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

MoollaDr. Aneesa Moolla, Principal Researcher, Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HE2RO)
amoolla@heroza.org

Dr. Aneesa Moolla is a Principal Researcher at the Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office since 2017. She is also a Clinical Supervisor and Lecturer within the Community Dentistry Faculty at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. Previously, she worked with the Red Cross Flying Doctor Association, offering dental care to children in remote rural areas where healthcare was totally inaccessible. Aneesa has worked across all sectors and has gained a diverse work experience in dental private practice, corporate organisations, health systems strengthening, research institutions and clinical research trials. In her current lecturing post, she combines both her Psychology and Dental qualifications in the training and clinical supervision of dental students. She was also selected and participated successfully in the UNESCO International Bioethics Teachers Training Course. Aneesa is currently the PI of a CFAR funded study estimating the prevalence of oral diseases and malignancies; and understanding oral disease progression by HIV status at a Johannesburg academic hospital. In addition, she is also the co-investigator on a USAID funded study utilising a discrete choice experiment to assess the preferences of high school learners for accessing HIV and reproductive health services. She holds a BA Clinical Psychology (Honours) degree and a masters and doctorate in Psychology of Education (Programme Development) obtained from the University of Johannesburg.  Aneesa has edited books and has published a varied array of journal articles in several international journals.

Dr. PascoeDr. Sophie Pascoe, Principal Researcher, Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office (HE2RO)
spascoe@heroza.org

Dr. Sophie Pascoe is an Epidemiologist and Principal Researcher at the Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office and holds a joint appointment in the School of Clinical Medicine at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. She joined HE2RO in 2015 and holds a Masters and Doctorate degree in Epidemiology from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM). Sophie has over 15 years of experience in HIV and sexual and reproductive health research, implementation of randomised control trials, and operational research evaluating health systems strengthening interventions in the region. Her research focuses on linkage to care, treatment adherence and retention in care among people living with HIV and the implementation of differentiated models of care as well as exploring the preferences of young people for HIV and contraceptive services. She was the local Principal Investigator for a large collaborative study with the World Bank, South African National Department of Health (NDoH) and Boston University evaluating the NDoH’s National Adherence Guidelines for Chronic Diseases. She is currently the Principle Investigator for two large USAID funded studies exploring the preferences of high school students for HIV and contraceptive services and evaluating viral load monitoring and reporting at primary healthcare sites in South Africa. Sophie is also a Deputy Editor for the Journal of the International AIDS Society, frequently reviews manuscripts for both local and international journals in the HIV filed and has authored and co-authored more than 28 peer-reviewed articles in several international journals.