AnthropologistLondon School of Hygiene and Tropical medicine
Dr. Heidi J. Larson is an anthropologist and Senior Lecturer at the London School of Hygiene &Tropical Medicine where she leads a research team studying public trust in vaccines – The Vaccine Confidence Project (www.vaccineconfidence.org ). The research group studies the socio-cultural and political determinants of public trust in vaccines globally and their implications for programmes and policies.
Dr. Larson previously headed Global Communication for Immunization at UNICEF and Chaired the Advocacy Task Force for GAVI (Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization). Her research focuses on the social and political factors which can affect health policies and programmes, with a particular specialization on risk and rumour management in health programmes - from clinical trials to delivery - and building public trust. She is also an Associate Professor in the Department of Global Health, University of Washington and a Fellow at the Chatham House Centre on Global Health Security.