Loice Ombajo, a Univesity of Nairobi (UoN) lecturer and the Head of Infectious Disease Unit at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), made history when she became the first African woman to be published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
A statement by UoN dated Monday, June 26, indicated that Ombajo’s research article was based on the switch to dolutegravir (a type of prescription medicine) for the treatment of HIV infection.
Ombajo gave a brief history of what led to the research through clinical trials that took about 48 weeks.
Her article, which was titled ‘Second-line switch to dolutegravir for treatment of HIV infection’, was published in the United Kingdom’s publication on June 22, 2023.
Ombajo explained that her article sought to demonstrate the benefits of Dolutegravir for HIV patients – noting that it was cost-effective in the long run.
This was attributed to patients using one drug as opposed to protein inhibitors which require patients to ingest multiple tablets.
Ombajo expressed her gratitude to her invaluable team members and staff that worked tirelessly round the clock to achieve the tremendous feat.
She also announced that the journal is open access and the data can be used by other researchers for used by different organisations to inform decisions on patients living with HIV.
This is the first time an African woman was published in the publication since its first issue debuted in January 1812.
Loice Ombajo Achievements
Ombajo rose to the limelight in 2020 at the onset of the pandemic when she shared her expertise over the virus on multiple TV stations.
She holds a Bachelor of Medicine in Internal Medicine from the University of Nairobi as well as a Diploma in Tropical Infectious Diseases from The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM).
The lecturer has also done clinical rotations in infectious diseases at the University of Maryland in Baltimore and the University of Texas.
