Divya

Dr. Divya Persai is a dental graduate with Masters in Public Health. She is working as a Research Associate at Public Health Foundation of India. Her previous experiences included work in HIV/AIDS surveillance. At PHFI, she was involved with a large scale tobacco control project which aimed to integrate tobacco cessation practices in routine practice of health care providers and strengthen the existing health system in tobacco control in two states of India. In this project she was involved in training mid-level officials from the various cadres of Indian health system on various aspects of tobacco cessation. She was actively involved in designing various resource materials for health care providers in tobacco control and conducting quantitative and qualitative research with a focus on tobacco control. She provided technical and operational inputs, ensuring smooth implementation of the project. She was also involved in documentation and communication within and outside the organization and ensured timely reporting of the project. During the course of project she has worked jointly with the Finance Officers in ensuring smooth program management, she also supported the Finance Officer in ensuring quality financial reporting to donors including project related organizational documents, fund transfers, audit reports, etc. Presently she is working on a project on developing a framework for Tobacco Research Network in India.

Selected Peer Reviewed Publications:

Panda R, Venkatesan S, Persai D, Trivedi M, Mathur MR. Factors determining intention to quit tobacco: exploring patient responses visiting public health facilities in India. Tobacco induced diseases. 2014;12(1):1.
Panda R., Persai D., Mathur MR, Sarkar BK. Perception and practices of physicians in addressing the smokeless tobacco epidemic: Findings from two states in India; Asian Pac. J. Cancer Prev. 2013;15.
Panda R., Persai D., Arora M. Leveraging tobacco control research in India: the need for setting up a tobacco control research network. Addiction. 2013; 108:1518-9.
Persai D., Mathur, MR., Panda RM.PP020 Self reported practices and attitudes of community health workers in tobacco control. Respiratory Medicine. 2013; 107:S15.
Panda R, Mathur M, Persai D, Srivastava S, Ramachandra SS. Preparedness of health system for tobacco control: Situational analysis of existing health programs in Andhra Pradesh, India. Asian Pac. J. Cancer Prev. 2012; 13 (12):1–4.