Simon Mutembo

Biographic Data

ID7004551
NAMESimon Mutembo
GIVEN NAMESSimon
FAMILY NAMEMutembo
SIGNATUREMUTEMBO S
AFFILIATIONSJohns Hopkins University
ORCID0000-0002-5389-5966
VERIFIEDYes
TOTAL WORKS12
TOTAL CITATIONS0
WORKS AS AUTHOR12
WORKS AS EDITOR0
FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR2019
LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR2025
H-INDEX0

  • Bridging immunization gaps

    Open AccessMoses Mwale, Penelope Masumbu et al.ARTICLEFrontiers in Public Health2025

    Zambia’s 2024 Measles-Rubella Supplementary Immunization Activity (SIA), conducted from 23 to 28 September across all 116 districts, targeted children aged 9–59 months to address immunization gaps exacerbated by COVID-19 disruptions and responding to ongoing measles outbreaks. This community case study evaluates the effectiveness of microplanning, the feasibility of real-time digital monitoring, and the equity of reaching zero-dose children durin…

  • Profiling zero-dose measles-rubella children in Zambia

    Open AccessMoses Mwale, Guissimon Phiri et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2025

    Measles & Rubella (MR) zero-dose children (unvaccinated for measles–rubella) cluster in underserved communities can sustain measles transmission. We estimated MR zero-dose prevalence after Zambia’s 2024 MR Supplementary Immunisation Activity (SIA) and identified associated risk factors and barriers. A coverage survey (two-stage stratified cluster design) across all 10 provinces, was conducted from 27 th December 2024–16 th January 2025, involved …

  • Comparing and integrating human mobility data sources for measles transmission modeling in Zambia

    Open AccessNatalya Kostandova, Christine Prosperi et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2025

    Quantifying population mobility is crucial in developing accurate models of infectious disease dynamics. Increasingly, multiple data sources are available to describe individual and population mobility in a single location; however, there are no methods to systematically integrate these data. Combining information from these data sets may be valuable and help mitigate inherent biases in each data set due to sampling, censoring, and recall. We exa…

  • High measles and rubella vaccine coverage and seroprevalence among Zambian children participating in a measles and rubella supplementary immunization activity

    Open AccessChristine Prosperi, Shaun Truelove et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2025

    Post-campaign coverage surveys estimate the proportion of previously unvaccinated children vaccinated during supplementary immunization activities (SIA) but cannot address whether susceptible children seronegative to measles and rubella viruses were vaccinated during the SIA. We conducted a cross-sectional serosurvey nested within the November 2020 measles-rubella SIA in Zambia, systematically sampling children aged 9 months to 5 years at 30 SIA …

  • Feasibility and acceptability of collecting dried blood spots (DBS) from children after vaccination during supplementary immunization activities to estimate measles and rubella seroprevalence

    Open AccessAndrea C Carcelen, Christine Prosperi et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2024

    Nested serosurveys within routine service delivery platforms such as planned supplemental immunization activities (SIAs) provide an opportunity to collect information that can be used to answer valuable questions on the effectiveness and efficiency of the delivery model to inform future activities. However, integrating research data collection in SIAs is rarely done due to concerns it will negatively impact the program. We conducted a serosurvey …

  • Who is missed in a community-based survey

    Open AccessNatalya Kostandova, Simon Mutembo et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2024

    Community-based serological studies are increasingly relied upon to measure disease burden, identify population immunity gaps, and guide control and elimination strategies; however, there is little understanding of the potential for and impact of sampling biases on outcomes of interest. As part of efforts to quantify measles immunity gaps in Zambia, a community-based serological survey using stratified multi-stage cluster sampling approach was co…

  • HIV test-and-treat policy improves clinical outcomes in Zambian adults from Southern Province

    Open AccessBenson M Hamooya, Simon Mutembo et al.ARTICLEFrontiers in Public Health2023

    Background Globally, most countries have implemented a test-and-treat policy to reduce morbidity and mortality associated with HIV infection. However, the impact of this strategy has not been critically appraised in many settings, including Zambia. We evaluated the retention and clinical outcomes of adults enrolled in antiretroviral therapy (ART) and assessed the impact of the test-and-treat policy. Methods We conducted a retrospective cohort stu…

  • Changes in mobility patterns during the Covid-19 pandemic in Zambia

    Open AccessStacie Loisate, Simon Mutembo et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2023

    The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted many facets of human behavior, including human mobility partially driven by the implementation of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) such as stay at home orders, travel restrictions, and workplace and school closures. Given the importance of human mobility in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, there have been an increase in analyses of mobility data to understand the COVID-19 pandemic to date. However, despite…

  • An evaluation of the early impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Zambia’s routine immunization program

    Open AccessAmy K Winter, Saki Takahashi et al.ARTICLEPLOS Global Public Health2023

    Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for both populations and healthcare systems are vast. In addition to morbidity and mortality from COVID-19, the pandemic also disrupted local health systems, including reductions or delays in routine vaccination services and catch-up vaccination campaigns. These disruptions could lead to outbreaks of other infectious diseases that result in an additional burden of disease and strain on the healthcare system. …

  • Using geospatial models to map zero-dose children

    Open AccessRohan Arambepola, Yangyupei Yang et al.ARTICLEBMJ Global Health2021

    INTRODUCTION: Despite gains in global coverage of childhood vaccines, many children remain undervaccinated. Although mass vaccination campaigns are commonly conducted to reach these children their effectiveness is unclear. We evaluated the effectiveness of a mass vaccination campaign in reaching zero-dose children. METHODS: We conducted a prospective study in 10 health centre catchment areas in Southern province, Zambia in November 2020. About 2 …

  • Predictors of loss to follow-up among children on long-term antiretroviral therapy in Zambia (2003–2015)

    Open AccessJane N Mutanga, Simon Mutembo et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2019

    Among the children LTFU mortality and default were substantially high. Children who started treatment in recent years (2013-2015) had the highest hazard of LTFU. Lack of access to a phone and non-disclosure of HIV-status to the index child was associated with higher hazards of LTFU. We recommend re-enforcement of client counselling and focused follow-up strategies using modern technology such as mobile phones as adjunct to current approaches

  • Long-term survival outcomes of HIV infected children receiving antiretroviral therapy

    Open AccessJane N Mutanga, Simon Mutembo et al.ARTICLEBMC Public Health2019

    We observed low attrition due to mortality among children on ART. Loss to follow-up was high (16%). Mortality was highest during the first 3 months of treatment. Children aged less than one year and those with advanced WHO disease stage had higher mortality. We recommend effective interventions to improve retention in care and early diagnosis of HIV in children