Image of Rifat Atun, MD, BS

Rifat Atun, M.B.,B.S.

Professor of Global Health Systems, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Faculty Affiliate in the Department of Health Policy and Management, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Dr Rifat Atun is Professor of Global Health Systems at Harvard University and the Faculty Chair for the Harvard Ministerial Leadership Program.

From 2006- to 2013, Dr Atun was Professor of International Health Management and Head of the Health Management Group at Imperial College London. From 2008 to 2012 he served as a member of the Executive Management Team of The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria as the Director of Strategy, Performance and Evaluation Cluster, where he chaired the panel that oversaw investments of around $4billion each year in more than 100 countries.

Dr Atun has published more than 400 papers in leading journals including the Lancet, NEJM, Academy of Management Journal, Lancet Global Health, Lancet Infectious Diseases, Lancet Oncology, and Lancet Psychiatry and PLoS Medicine. He has led or has been a commissioner in 12 Lancet Commissions and was a co-author and member of the Advisory Committee for the Editors for Disease Control Priorities (DCP) 3. In 2020, he was recognized by the Web of Science as one of the World’s Highly Cited Researchers.

Prof. Atun has worked with more than 30 governments globally and with the World Bank, World Health Organization, and the UK Department for International Development (DfID) to design, implement and evaluate health system reform initiatives. In 1999-2006 he was a member of the UK DfID Resource Centre for Health Systems.

Dr Atun has led executive education programs and undertaken assignments for major organizations including Novartis, Medtronic, GSK, Pfizer Inc., the Vodafone Group, and Hofmann-La Roche.

Professor Atun’s research has two major strands. The first examines health systems performance and how design and implementation of health system reforms impact on outcomes. The second strand of research explores adoption and diffusion of innovations in health systems (e.g. new health technologies, disease control programmes, and primary healthcare reforms), and innovative financing in global health. Prof. Atun is a co-Investigator and the joint lead for the innovation work stream at the National Centre for Infection Prevention and Management at Imperial College.

He is also a co-Investigator and the Theme Lead for ‘Organisational Change, Health Economics and Evaluation’ at the NIHR Health Protection Research Unit for Antimicrobial Resistance and Healthcare Associated Infection.

HIV and the growing health burden from noncommunicable diseases in Botswana: modelling study.
Authors: Authors: Haacker M, Bärnighausen T, Atun R.
J Glob Health
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Scale-up of radiotherapy for cervical cancer in the era of human papillomavirus vaccination in low-income and middle-income countries: a model-based analysis of need and economic impact.
Authors: Authors: Rodin D, Burger EA, Atun R, Barton M, Gospodarowicz M, Grover S, Hanna TP, Jaffray DA, Knaul FM, Lievens Y, Zubizarreta E, Milosevic M.
Lancet Oncol
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Global childhood cancer survival estimates and priority-setting: a simulation-based analysis.
Authors: Authors: Ward ZJ, Yeh JM, Bhakta N, Frazier AL, Girardi F, Atun R.
Lancet Oncol
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The Lancet Commission on diagnostics: advancing equitable access to diagnostics.
Authors: Authors: Wilson ML, Atun R, DeStigter K, Flanigan J, Fleming KA, Horton S, Kleinert S, Sayed S.
Lancet
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Variation in health system performance for managing diabetes among states in India: a cross-sectional study of individuals aged 15 to 49?years.
Authors: Authors: Prenissl J, Jaacks LM, Mohan V, Manne-Goehler J, Davies JI, Awasthi A, Bischops AC, Atun R, Bärnighausen T, Vollmer S, Geldsetzer P.
BMC Med
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Artificial intelligence: opportunities and risks for public health.
Authors: Authors: Panch T, Pearson-Stuttard J, Greaves F, Atun R.
Lancet Digit Health
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Hypertension screening, awareness, treatment, and control in India: A nationally representative cross-sectional study among individuals aged 15 to 49 years.
Authors: Authors: Prenissl J, Manne-Goehler J, Jaacks LM, Prabhakaran D, Awasthi A, Bischops AC, Atun R, Bärnighausen T, Davies JI, Vollmer S, Geldsetzer P.
PLoS Med
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A practical approach to universal health coverage.
Authors: Authors: Mukherjee JS, Mugunga JC, Shah A, Leta A, Birru E, Oswald C, Jerome G, Almazor CP, Satti H, Yates R, Atun R, Rhatigan J, Gottlieb G, Farmer PE.
Lancet Glob Health
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Estimating the total incidence of global childhood cancer: a simulation-based analysis.
Authors: Authors: Ward ZJ, Yeh JM, Bhakta N, Frazier AL, Atun R.
Lancet Oncol
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Health system performance for people with diabetes in 28 low- and middle-income countries: A cross-sectional study of nationally representative surveys.
Authors: Authors: Manne-Goehler J, Geldsetzer P, Agoudavi K, Andall-Brereton G, Aryal KK, Bicaba BW, Bovet P, Brian G, Dorobantu M, Gathecha G, Singh Gurung M, Guwatudde D, Msaidie M, Houehanou C, Houinato D, Jorgensen JMA, Kagaruki GB, Karki KB, Labadarios D, Martins JS, Mayige MT, McClure RW, Mwalim O, Mwangi JK, Norov B, Quesnel-Crooks S, Silver BK, Sturua L, Tsabedze L, Wesseh CS, Stokes A, Marcus M, Ebert C, Davies JI, Vollmer S, Atun R, Bärnighausen TW, Jaacks LM.
PLoS Med
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