12/19/2022

SAVIR Spotlight

Maleeha Naseem

Tell me a little about you.

I am a trained emergency physician, and I am from Karachi, Pakistan. I also hold a master’s degree in Epidemiology and Biostatistics and have a clinical research background. Before coming here, I was working as a faculty at the Department of Community Health Sciences, the Aga Khan University, Karachi Pakistan.

Why is injury prevention so important in your country?

Because Pakistan is a low middle income country, we don’t have a very strong health system especially when it comes to trauma and injuries. There is not much awareness and policies with respect to injury prevention. We are still struggling to set up efficient and sustainable trauma systems. I come from a city which is heavily populated and has no access to safe mass transit. We have tremendous traffic related issues. The road safety laws are there but somehow there is a limited implementation of these laws. We see a lot of young adolescents and children dying of road traffic crash injuries or becoming disabled. Since all these deaths and outcomes are preventable this gives us a call to take action for road injury prevention.

Tell me about your research interests?

My research interests are injury prevention specifically focused on road traffic crash injuries. I also wish to explore the outcome of road traffic crash injuries and how we can improve the outcome of patients who become a victim of these injuries. I wish to bring innovative approaches to curb the issue of road traffic crash injuries especially in low resource settings. Some of my previous projects were based on devising studies for revising road safety laws in Pakistan, exploring how AI [Artificial Intelligence] can be used to prevent injuries and predict outcome of injuries in vulnerable populations, and improving the outcomes of trauma patients based on transfer status to definitive trauma care hospitals.

You traveled far to attend the SAVIR 2022 conference. How was your first SAVIR conference?

I was able to showcase my work at such an international level which was a great opportunity. I traveled all the way from Karachi, Pakistan to attend this conference and the experience was phenomenal. Not only attending the conference and presenting my work but also interacting and networking with outstanding injury prevention researchers across the country. It was all an amazing experience. It was challenging obviously coming all the way from Pakistan just for the sake of the conference, but it really paid off.

What motivates you every day?

What motivates me every day is that I wish to explore new things in my career and my life. I wish to do something that brings a lot of change with respect to the work that I am doing and that I wish to do. And my son – he is an inspiration for me. A lot of motivation comes from my family with whose support I’m here in my career today: my mother, my father, and my siblings. Being with my son and taking on new challenges in life are my motivation, I wish to set a good example for others with my life.

What do you like to do in your free time?

I love to spend my time with my son. It’s tough with my studies, but for fun I play with my son. I enjoy cooking and trying new recipes. I also wish to explore the nature and travel around with my son. I watch TV sometimes but usually I love hanging around with my son.