Ndidi Ike
Atlanta,USA
Summary
Strategic global health research leader with 17+ years of experience directing complex, multi-country research operations within public health and nonprofit environments. Proven expertise in research governance, operational strategy, regulatory compliance, and cross-functional leadership supporting evidence-based decision-making. Adept at building scalable systems, mitigating risk, and ensuring ethical conduct of research across diverse technical domains. Trusted advisor to senior leadership with a strong track record of mentoring teams and delivering high-impact research portfolios aligned with organizational mission and donor requirements.
Overview
15
15
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Epidemiologist/Program Manager
CDC
Atlanta, GA
12.2024 - 04.2025
- Directed the CDC Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) survey, analyzing maternal health data to identify trends and support evidence-based recommendations. Collaborated with stakeholders to enhance program effectiveness, refine survey quality, and ensure standardized data collection across jurisdictions.
- Delivered expert technical assistance to clinical partners, optimizing survey design and data collection processes, improving data quality by 30%, and enabling precise evaluation of maternal health outcomes.
- Led cross-functional teams in analyzing maternal health datasets, generating timely, evidence-driven insights that informed strategic decisions and increased program effectiveness by 20%.
- Pioneered implementation and ongoing management of PRAMS, creating and maintaining analytic datasets, monitoring maternal health behaviors before, during, and after pregnancy, and producing actionable study reports that shaped national maternal health policies.
- Forged strategic partnerships with healthcare providers, academic institutions, and community organizations, facilitating the use of PRAMS data to support study objectives, advance maternal health initiatives, and improve outcomes.
Senior Epidemiologist & Project Officer
08.2010 - 12.2024
- Led national HIV surveillance initiatives, ensuring high-quality data collection, validation, and analysis across multiple jurisdictions. Provided technical assistance to optimize data collection and study design, improving program evaluations and reporting. Managed 15+ grantees, coordinated with research partners, and contributed to outbreak investigations, equity-focused interventions, and epidemiological studies on HIV trends.
- Directed privacy and compliance programs for multi-million-dollar federally funded research initiatives, ensuring full compliance with HIPAA, federal privacy laws, and security requirements.
- Conducted Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) and implemented risk mitigation strategies for sensitive datasets, including personally identifiable information (PII) and protected health information (PHI).
- Advised leadership on balancing data accessibility and confidentiality in epidemiological and clinical research programs.
- Spearheaded implementation of HIV surveillance systems in Pacific Islands, enhancing timely, accurate reporting and disease monitoring, in collaboration with state-level research partners and senior officials.
- Directed a portfolio of 15+ grantees, earning CDC leadership recognition for exemplary execution of HIV surveillance programs in US Pacific Islands.
- Conducted in-depth analyses of HIV surveillance datasets to identify health disparities across key subgroups, generating actionable insights that informed equity-focused interventions targeting vulnerable populations.
Education
Master of Science - Public Health: Health Policy & Management
Emory University
Atlanta, GABachelor of Science - Information Systems
Wayne State University
Detroit, MISkills
- Research Operations Strategy & Execution
- Multi-Country Research Portfolio Management
- IRB, GCP & Regulatory Compliance
- SOP Development & Risk Mitigation
- Donor & Sponsor Compliance (NIH, CDC, USAID, Foundations)
- Project Management Tools & Dashboards
- Staff Leadership, Mentorship & Capacity Building
- Microsoft Office 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook)
- SharePoint, Teams, Zoom
- Project management and tracking tools (dashboards, workflow systems)
- Data and documentation management systems
Certification
- Project Management Training (formal coursework and applied leadership)
- Human Subjects Protection & Research Ethics (GCP-aligned)
- Ongoing professional development in research administration and regulatory affairs
Timeline
Epidemiologist/Program Manager
CDC
12.2024 - 04.2025
Senior Epidemiologist & Project Officer
08.2010 - 12.2024
Bachelor of Science - Information Systems
Wayne State University
Master of Science - Public Health: Health Policy & Management
Emory University
LEADERSHIP
Earned leadership commendations for driving enterprise-wide data compliance while ensuring timely, accurate reporting and actionable insights in HIV surveillance and chronic disease programs.
SELECTED LEADERSHIP & IMPACT HIGHLIGHTS
- 17+ years supporting evidence generation to inform national and global health policy
- Extensive experience operating within complex, matrixed organizations
- Proven ability to translate research objectives into operationally feasible and compliant execution plans
- Strong communicator able to influence decision-making across technical and non-technical stakeholders
DATA ANALYSIS & INTERPRETATION
Championed a data modernization initiative, enhancing the quality and accessibility of health datasets for real-world evidence studies and improving reliability of study results.
OUTBREAK INVESTIGATION & FIELD EPIDEMIOLOGY
Led a pivotal HIV outbreak investigation among 1,500+ people who inject drugs, uncovering transmission networks and risk factors that informed rapid response strategies and optimized harm reduction services.
DATA ANALYSIS
Adept at developing study protocols, building analytic datasets, and performing data analyses.
PUBLIC HEALTH POLICY & GUIDANCE
Exceptional ability to bridge scientific, operational, and regulatory priorities to deliver compliant outcomes.