Evidence-Led Health Systems
Evidence, Evaluation and AI for Complex Public Health Problems
Public health problems rarely have single causes or clean solutions. They are shaped by interconnected systems, multiple causal pathways, behavioral and social determinants, and changing contexts. Understanding these challenges requires more than identifying what is wrong. It requires asking sharper questions, examining how change is expected to happen, and building evidence that can stand up to complexity.
Evidence and evaluation provide the tools to do this. From understanding the roots of a public health challenge to developing a Theory of Change and selecting an appropriate evaluation approach, a rigorous evidence-building process can help researchers and practitioners move from a tangled problem to a credible pathway for learning and action.
Evidence, Evaluation and AI for Complex Public Health Problems
Sambodhi is hosting a Public Health Research Bootcamp titled ‘Evidence, Evaluation and AI for Complex Public Health Problems.’ The bootcamp will take participants through the full arc of evidence-building, beginning with understanding a complex public health challenge and framing a SMART research question, before moving into Theory of Change, evaluation design, and the practical use of AI in public health research.
Designed as a discussion-based and practice-oriented learning experience, the bootcamp will combine facilitator-modelled critique sessions, live demonstrations, and hands-on application. Participants will work with a real public health challenge and progressively build an evidence pathway connecting problem definition, programme logic, evaluation methodology, and responsible AI use.
Meet the Facilitators
Umang
Assistant Vice President
Lead - Government Advisory and CSR, Sambodhi
Moderator
Umang is a Senior Researcher on the Public Health team at Sambodhi, with 7+ years of experience. His experience spans diverse domains, including maternal and child health, family planning and reproductive health, public health workforce development, livelihoods and natural resource management, and the evaluation of AI-enabled and emerging health technologies. He has led experimental and quasi-experimental evaluations across multiple Indian states and worked closely with development partners and research institutions, including the World Bank, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), Johns Hopkins University (JHU), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and Winrock International.
Srishti
Department of Geography
Fakir Mohan University, Vyasa Vihar, Nuapadhi, Balasore, Odisha
Srishti Verma is Manager – Research at Sambodhi Research and Communications, with over five years of experience in public health research and programs. She works on monitoring, evaluation, and learning for public health programs, with experience across implementation research, systematic reviews, clinical research, and quantitative and qualitative methods in both clinical and community settings. She has contributed to the development of theories of change, evaluation frameworks, research tools, and mixed-methods study designs, and has experience analyzing quantitative and qualitative data to generate evidence for programme improvement.
Nivedita Mishra
Senior Scientist,
India Meteorological Department
Nivedita Mishra is Senior Manager – Public Health Practice at Sambodhi Research & Communications, with over 11 years of experience driving evidence-informed approaches to strengthen health systems and improve program implementation across India. Her work lies at the intersection of public health research, health systems strengthening, implementation science, and evidence-informed policy. She has led complex, multi-state public health initiatives and worked closely with governments, multilateral agencies, and development partners, including the World Bank, NITI Aayog, National Health Mission, Jhpiego, the Gates Foundation, PHFI, and ECHO India.
Rashika Anand
Associate Scientist
Geospatial Intelligence Lab, IRRI, South Asia Regional Centre, Varanasi
Dr. Rashika Anand is Manager – Public Health Research at Sambodhi Research & Communications, where she works on research and monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) studies for public health and development programmes across India. With over three years of experience in applied public health research, her work focuses on designing and implementing evaluation studies to understand programme implementation, effectiveness, and outcomes. Her work spans immunization, maternal, newborn and child health, reproductive health, digital health, health systems, gender, and climate resilience. Her work includes research and evaluation studies conducted in partnership with national and state governments and organizations such as the World Bank, Jhpiego, the Gates Foundation, and USAID.
Debrupa Bhattacharjee
Associate Scientist
Geospatial Intelligence Lab, IRRI, South Asia Regional Centre, Varanasi
Debrupa Bhattacharjee is a research and evaluation professional with over seven years of experience in public health, governance, and social development research. She has extensive experience in designing and managing mixed-methods research, impact evaluations, health systems assessments, data quality assessments, systematic reviews, and quantitative and qualitative data analysis. She has successfully led and contributed to large-scale research and evaluation assignments for leading development partners such as the World Bank, USAID, Gavi, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, UKRI-GCRF, and CIFF, demonstrating strong capabilities in managing complex, multi-stakeholder assignments and delivering high-quality analytical outputs.
Isha Garg
Associate Scientist
Geospatial Intelligence Lab, IRRI, South Asia Regional Centre, Varanasi
Dr. Isha Garg is working as an Assistant Manager at Sambodhi Research and Communications, bringing together a background in public health and clinical medicine to her research work. Her recent assignments include Formative Research in Low Immunization Uptake Regions of India for the Community of Practice-Demand (CoPD), Monitoring and Evaluation for Comprehensive Primary Health Care (CPHC) in Uttarakhand, contributing to secondary literature review, study design, sampling, and tools development; and Concurrent Learnings on Complications in Maternal and Newborn Care for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. With a strong grounding in both qualitative and quantitative research methods, Dr. Garg continues to contribute meaningfully to evidence-based public health and health systems strengthening initiatives across India.
Anuradha Katyal
Associate Scientist
Geospatial Intelligence Lab, IRRI, South Asia Regional Centre, Varanasi
Anuradha Katyal is Deputy Vice President and Strategic Business Unit Head for Public Health at Sambodhi Research and Communications, where she leads a portfolio of complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives spanning research, evaluation, and strategic advisory, with oversight of business development and practice-level profit and loss. With over 16 years of experience, Anuradha works at the intersection of quantitative research, health systems, and emerging technology. She has worked on applying machine learning models and advanced statistical methods to both primary survey data and large-scale secondary datasets, generating evidence that goes beyond description to explain why interventions work, for whom, and under what conditions. Her work has been published with BMJ Open, PLOS One, Health Policy and Planning and Economic & Political Weekly.
Monal Joshi
Associate Scientist
Geospatial Intelligence Lab, IRRI, South Asia Regional Centre, Varanasi
Monal Joshi is a public health and development professional with nearly three years of experience in research, monitoring and evaluation, and implementation research. She currently works as a Deputy Research Manager at Sambodhi Research and Communications, where she contributes to mixed-methods studies, program evaluations, and evidence generation to strengthen health systems and inform public policy. Her work has focused on maternal and child health, immunization, health systems, and community-based research, with experience spanning quantitative and qualitative research methods, data analysis, and translating evidence into actionable insights for policymakers and program implementers.
What to Expect
01
A practical approach to understanding complex public health challenges, including root cause analysis, stakeholder mapping, and behavioral and social determinants.
02
How to move from a broad public health problem to a sharply defined SMART research question that can anchor an evaluation
03
A hands-on exploration of Theory of Change, including results chains, hidden assumptions, risks, actors, incentives, and unintended consequences.
04
How to design credible evaluations for complex and adaptive interventions, including quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods approaches, while accounting for attribution and equity.
05
Practical applications of AI in public health research, from programme design and data analysis to monitoring and communication, alongside critical considerations around hallucinations, bias, overconfidence, data privacy, and ethics.
Get in touch
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