Background of staff at the Executive Secretariat

André Meheus, professor emeritus, MD, PhD

André Meheus graduated as MD from the University of Ghent, Belgium in 1969, studied tropical medicine (Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp), medical statistics and epidemiology (University of Brussels) and occupational health (University of Ghent). He became in 1969 assistant in the Department of Social Medicine and Hygiene, University of Ghent, and from 1971 to 1974 he was responsible for public health teaching and training at the National University in Butare-Rwanda, Central Africa. In 1974 he moved to the department of Epidemiology and Social Medicine at the University of Antwerp as senior lecturer, became associate professor in 1978 and full professor in 1986. From 1987 to 1993 he was the Programme Manager at the World Health Organization, Geneva, of the Programme of sexually transmitted diseases and treponematoses (WHO/VDT); in 1993 he resumed his post as professor and head of the Department of Epidemiology and Social Medicine in Antwerp.

In the late sixties, research interests focused on the epidemiology of ischemic heart disease and chronic non-specific lung disease. Since the early seventies, related to extensive work in developing countries, research and public health work has focused on the epidemiology and control of infectious diseases, in particular sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS, and since the late nineties also on vaccine-preventable diseases. Published more than 350 scientific articles and books on subjects of public health, preventive medicine and infectious disease control, is a member of the editorial board of the major STD/AIDS journals and of the expert panel for venereal diseases and treponematoses of the World Health Organization. Is adviser on international public health for many governments, multilateral and bilateral agencies.

Carine Dochez, Msc, MenvM, PhD

Carine Dochez obtained a BSc from the University of Hasselt, Belgium, in 1990 and a MSc in Biology from the University of Antwerp, Belgium, in 1992. She took an additional Masters degree in Environmental Management from Heriot-Watt University, Scotland, in 1999. She obtained her PhD in Biology at the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, in 2004.

From 1992 till 1994, she was a researcher at the Department of Protozoology at the Prince Leopold Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerpen, Belgium, where she was involved in different aspects of malaria research. She focused on the assessment of new antimalarials and the development of in vitro and in vivo research tools. Subjects of research were lead drugs from the naphthyl isoquinoline alkaloid family, artemisinin and derivatives from Artemisia annua L. cultures, in vitro erythrocytic stages of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, and erythrocytic and exo-erythrocytic stages of P. berghei in vitro and in vivo. In 1995, she worked at the Department of Microbiology at the University of Antwerp, Belgium.

In 1996, she was recruited by the Flemish Development Cooperation, and subsequently stationed in Nigeria (1996 and 1997) and Uganda (1999-2005). During her eight-years African stay she built up extended experience in developmental aid, agricultural projects, food security and health in Africa, project management, and international collaboration. She is the author of a number of scientific publications in high-ranked journals.

Dr. Dochez joined NESI in October 2005, where she is co-responsible for training, capacity building, and international cooperation.

Jocelijn Stokx,  PharmD

Jocelijn Stokx graduated in 2001 as a pharmacist from the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium. She worked for more than 6 years as a pharmacist in private pharmacies in Belgium. In 2007-2008, she took the postgraduate course ‘Tropical Biomedical Sciences and International Health’ at the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp (ITM), Belgium.

End 2008, she signed up for a 2 years contract as laboratory advisor and researcher for ITM in Tete, Mozambique for the “Rede Integrada II Project”, being a collaboration between 4 partners (ITM, International Centre of Reproductive Health of the University of Ghent, Doctors without Borders and the Provincial Health Department of Tete in Mozambique) with the general objective to strengthen the health services of the Province of Tete in order to better treat HIV/Aids and other sexually transmitted diseases. Jocelijn was responsible for training and support of the laboratory staff and quality control of the clinical laboratory of the Provincial hospital of Tete. In addition, she also conducted operational research on the seroprevalence of HIV, Hepatitis B and C and syphilis among blood donors. She was involved in research on Malaria Rapid Diagnostic tests and HIV diagnostics.

She joined the NESI team in November 2010.

Katrin Verboven

Katrin Verboven obtained a Master in Arabic and Islamic Studies in 1994 and took up a postgraduate course in International Relations in 1994-1995 from the Catholic University in Leuven. In 1995 she moved to Cairo, Egypt, to take additional courses at the Dutch-Flemish Institute in Cairo.

She joined the Institute of Cultural Affairs, an international NGO, and worked as a volunteer on the development and management of their local library in Cairo.

In 1997 she started working at the Netherlands Embassy in Cairo as trade assistant and was mainly involved in organizing trade missions, trade fairs and providing Egyptian companies with trade information on the Netherlands. In 2000 she took up an assignment for one year at the Flanders Investment & Trade Office in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to run the administration of their office.

In 2001 she was recruited again by the Dutch government to assist the Netherlands Consulate General in Dubai. Till 2008 she was PA to the Consul General and was mainly organizing trade missions, cultural events and official delegations to Dubai.

She joined NESI in April 2010.