Akiba: A savings intervention to reduce men’s engagement in HIV risk behaviors
Kisumu, Kenya
The Global Health Lab Team
Harsha Thirumurthy, PhD
Co-Director
Harsha Thirumurthy is a Professor in the Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also Associate Director at the Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics and a Research Associate at Penn’s Population Studies Center. In addition, he also serves as Co-Director of the Penn Development Research Initiative (PDRI). Dr. Thirumurthy’s interests lie at the intersection of economics and public health. A major focus of his research has been to use insights from economics and psychology to design and evaluate interventions to achieve better health outcomes in low-income settings. His research has also studied the economic impacts of large-scale health initiatives. Dr. Thirumurthy has led numerous randomized trials of behavioral interventions, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. He has published peer-reviewed articles in leading journals in economics, public health, and medicine, including JAMA, The Lancet HIV, PLOS Medicine, the New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of Public Economics, and the American Economic Journal-Applied Economics. Dr. Thirumurthy completed a PhD in economics at Yale University. He is an Affiliate of the Bureau for Research on the Economic Analysis of Development and Chair of the Population Sciences review panel at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
Selected Projects
In The News
- Alison Buttenheim, Harsha Thirumurthy, and two colleagues from Wits University in South Africa published a commentary in The Lancet Global Health - Maximising the value of nudge units for global health. The commentary reflects on the work of the Indlela nudge unit in South Africa over the past three years. It also addresses the need for nudge units and behavioral scientists engaged in global health research to invest in strengthening local capacity.The Lancet Global Health · Harsha Thirumurthy · Alison Buttenheim
- BEGIN Lab Co-Directors Alison Buttenheim and Harsha Thirumurthy host launch event at UPenn Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics.
- Aaron Richterman and Harsha Thirumurthy's new article showing cash-transfer programs reduced risk of death in low- and middle-income countries featured in New York TimesNature; The New York Times · Harsha Thirumurthy
Recent Publications
- High prevalence of STIs among men engaged in transactional sex and alcohol use in western Kenya: important implications for STI prevention interventionsSexually Transmitted Infections · November 2024Napierala S., Bair E. F., Omollo OD., Egbe, T. I., Wesonga J. O., Rajaratnam A., Celum C., Thirumurthy H., Agot K.
- Jitegemee (rely on yourself): a multi-phase process of co-creating a personal savings intervention with female sex workers in western Kenya to reduce their HIV riskBMC Public Health · October 2024Agot, K., Onyango, J., Ochillo, M., Okello, T. O., Carol, S., Odwar, T., Moraa, J., Otticha, S., Odeny, R., Okeyo, N., Ochieng, L., Ochieng, G., Wango, I., Koloo, A., Badia, J., Camlin, C. S., Ayieko, B., Napierala, S., & Thirumurthy, H.
- Mobile delivery of COVID-19 vaccines improved uptake in rural Sierra LeoneNature · March 2024Buttenheim, A., & Thirumurthy, H.
Contact
hthirumu@pennmedicine.upenn.edu
Research Areas
Global Health
Medication Adherence
mHealth & Wearables