Meredith Brooks, PhD

Meredith Brooks joined the Department of Global Health at Boston University School of Public Health in July 2022. She completed her M.P.H in Urban Health and Ph.D. in Population Health, both from Northeastern University, and a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Tuberculosis Epidemiology at Harvard Medical School's Department of Global Health and Social Medicine. She holds a certificate in Implementation Science from UCSF and is currently a Fellow of the 7th Cohort of HIV Implementation Science Training at Johns Hopkins University.

Dr. Brooks is committed to improving the health and wellbeing of vulnerable populations globally. Most recently, her research focuses on identifying interventions and strategies to improve detection, diagnoses, and care for children and adolescents with, or at high-risk of, tuberculosis by producing evidence to refine diagnostic algorithms, identify gaps in care and treatment, and to advance surveillance efforts. Her research also aims to develop and apply advanced statistical and machine learning approaches to improve tuberculosis indicators and outcomes. Dr. Brooks' research using implementation science methodology to improve the uptake of evidence-based interventions to enhance the care and management of vulnerable populations with tuberculosis. Dr. Brooks also has experience conducting large international clinical trials, with topics spanning from tuberculosis treatment to spinal anesthesia. Her research involvement has included partnerships and collaborations in Bangladesh, India, Mexico, Mongolia, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Sierra Leone, and South Africa.

My research program is supported by sustained NIH, foundation, and institutional funding focused on improving the implementation of tuberculosis prevention, screening, and treatment in real-world health systems, with a particular emphasis on children and adolescents. I am Principal Investigator of an NIH NIAID K01 award (K01AI151083) examining pediatric and adolescent TB transmission using geospatial and epidemiologic methods, with NIH administrative supplements extending this work toward implementation-relevant targeting and intervention design. I am also a Co-Investigator on NIH R01–funded implementation trials, including SAIA-TB (R01NR020866), which applies a stepped-wedge cluster randomized design to evaluate an evidence-based implementation strategy in rural South Africa. My early-stage and translational work has been supported by competitive foundation and institutional awards, including an Early Career Award from the Thrasher Research Fund, a Research Catalyst Award from the American Lung Association, a CFAR Developmental Award (PED-HATT), and a Dean’s Innovation Award supporting the CAMP-TB study. I am also the recipient of a Carlin Award for Public Health Innovation for the ADAPT-TB study, which bridges predictive analytics with frontline implementation to improve TB screening strategies. Earlier in my career, I was supported by a Parker B. Francis Fellowship in Pulmonary Research through the Francis Family Foundation and a National Research Service Award Postdoctoral Fellowship (F32), providing a strong foundation for my independent, implementation-focused research program. Together, these grants demonstrate a cohesive program of research that spans method development, applied implementation studies, and innovation at the interface of data science and practice, with direct relevance to policy and programmatic decision-making.

Dr. Brooks is the Dept Global Health's representative and the Chair of the Faculty Senate at BUSPH. She also serves on the DrPH Committee. Dr. Brooks currently serves on the Editorial Boards at Public Library of Science (PLOS) One, British Medical Journal (BMJ) Open, and BMC Global and Public Health.