Dr. Margaret Mutumba is an award winning global health innovator and scholar with over 10 years of research and practice in maternal, sexual, reproductive and health systems in Sub-Saharan Africa. Originally from Uganda and based in Canada, Dr. Mutumba is driven by the mission of elevating the wellbeing of underserved communities as exemplified by her career in public health. Dr. Mutumba is a Board Member for the Canadian Association of Global Health and YMCA of Three Rivers.
GLOBAL HEALTH RESEARCH
More recently, Dr. Mutumba's doctoral research at the University of Waterloo focused on access to affordable fertility care in Sub-Saharan Africa. Using an Implementation Science and Systems Thinking lens, her work considered the multi-level factors (macro, meso and micro) influencing successful implementation of low-cost IVF initiatives in Uganda. It provided actionable recommendations towards implementation of low-cost IVF in low-resource public health systems to increase access to safe, affordable fertility care and underscore the right to parenthood for all. Through this work, Dr. Mutumba uses her knowledge and expertise as a Consultant to the World Health Organization (WHO) Human Reproduction Program to address the priorities of persons needed fertility care in low-resource contexts.
REPRODUCTIVE & FERTILITY HEALTH
The impetus for this research was founded on Mutumba's many years of experience and management of fertility hospitals in Uganda, Zambia, Tanzania and Rwanda. Through her role as General Manager, Dr. Mutumba witnessed the stigma and severe challenges faced by persons with infertility. Dr. Mutumba developed first-hand expertise on operational, regulatory and clinical mechanisms associated with infertility/care in low-resource settings and successful led the establishment of the first IVF center in Lusaka, Zambia earning an Outstanding Performance Award. Dr. Mutumba also uses her professional expertise to raise awareness regarding infertility and fertility care as exemplified in this BBC News Feature titled “What should be done to protect the rights of surrogate mothers?”
INNOVATION & ENTREPRENUERSHIP
As an award winning global health innovator and entrepreneur, Dr. Mutumba currently leads the Frugal Biomedical Innovations at Western University. She is also the founded MedAtlas, a digital health platform whose mission is to make it easier to find specialist healthcare in Africa starting with fertility specialists. Her achievements as a CEO included building a driven technical and non-technical, virtual team to build, pilot and deliver tele-health services in East Africa. This work has earned MedAtlas awards and recognition internationally, advancing its mission in modernizing healthcare access in Africa through implementation of technological solutions.
EQUITY, DIVERSITY & INCLUSION ACTIONS
Dr. Mutumba also has strong background in equity, diversity and inclusion actions. As part of the President's Anti-racism Task Force, Mutumba was involved in developing institutional-wide recommendations to improve mental and health wellness of equity deserving groups. She also led a working group on representation, admissions and mentorship of minority graduate students. Furthermore, Dr. Mutumba has experience advocating, developing, and implementing programs addressing sexual and reproductive health priorities in Eastern Africa.
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Previously, Mutumba's career included project management in initiatives addressing maternal mortality in Africa with Health Poverty Action U.K, supporting youth living with HIV with Body and Soul UK and supporting grant writing and project implementation in Africa at Malaria Consortium UK and
Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, UK.
KEY SKILLS
Technical expertise: Implementation Science, Qualitative Research, Digital Health Innovation
Transferable skills: Expectational in Communication, Relationship Building, Leadership, Creative Thinking, Research and Analytics, Professionalism, Approachability and Teamwork.
