Epke Annelie Le Rutte
Senior research consultant
PhD, DVM, MSc (Hons), BSc
epke.lerutte@thekids.org.au
http://www.linkedin.com/in/epke-le-rutteDr. Epke Le Rutte is a veterinarian specialised in infectious disease control, with a PhD in human neglected tropical disease (NTD) control and elimination. She worked as a postdoc at Erasmus MC, Rotterdam the Netherlands as part of the NTD-modelling consortium, supporting policy makers with the elimination of visceral leishmaniasis on the Indian subcontinent.
She continued her modelling career at the Disease Modelling and Intervention Dynamics group of the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute, where she used an individual-based model capturing the transmission dynamics of COVID-19 in Switzerland and Europe. The team estimated the impact of different interventions on public health outcomes whilst collaborating with fellow SARS-CoV-2 modelling teams within Switzerland and Europe as well as supporting the Swiss Government.
In her current role as Senior Research Consultant at the Telethon Kids Institute and University of Western Australia, she is pursuing her interest in providing modelling estimates to inform funding strategies and R&D discussions for malaria control and elimination. For this purpose, she uses an individual-based model which captures the transmission dynamics of the malaria parasite between humans and the mosquito vector. This allows her to analyse and compare the health and economic impact of a wide array of current and future malaria interventions including vector control, preventive tools, and treatments, globally.
Over the years she has built up a vast network, having worked closely with funders, non-governmental organisations, pharmaceutical industry, fellow academics, and local ministries of public health. She is excited to have recently also been applying her infectious disease modelling expertise to other infectious diseases including RSV.
Education and Qualifications
- PhD – Doctor of Philosophy – Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
o Elimination and control of visceral leishmaniasis, modelling the impact of different interventions on the prevalence of this neglected tropical disease to inform decision making - INSEAD The Business School for the World – Fontainebleau, France
o Developing Emerging Leaders Programme - DVM – Doctor of Veterinary Medicine – Utrecht University the Netherlands
- MSc – Master of Science – Utrecht University the Netherlands – with honours
o Major in Research: Veterinary Public Health - MSc Courses – Harvard School of Public Health Boston, MA, United States of America
o Fundamentals of Epidemiology
o Global Health and Infectious Diseases: Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Infections - BSc – Bachelor of Science – Utrecht University the Netherlands
o Veterinary medicine: Livestock and veterinary public health
Active Collaboration
- Collaborating with the Malaria Integrated Portfolio Management team of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle, United States of America
- Independent Senior Research Consultant with the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health of the Swiss Tropical Public Health Institute, Basel, Switzerland
- PhD co-supervisor with the Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp, Belgium and Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands