Comfort Z. Olorunsaiye is an Associate Professor in the Department of Public Health at Arcadia University, a population health researcher, implementation scientist, and health equity advocate. Her experiences cut across maternal and child health, vaccinations and immunization programs, sexual and reproductive health, and social justice. She currently serves as Principal Investigator on multiple grant-funded studies addressing reproductive health, using community-based participatory research to tackle the social and structural determinants of health in marginalized populations.
Prior to Arcadia University, she was a Technical Advisor at the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in New York, leading child immunization and integrated interventions in humanitarian and fragile settings. She also completed a Post-Doctoral Evaluation Fellowship in the Global Immunization Division at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), where she developed evaluation plans for a multi-year global health security program in Ghana.
Dr. Olorunsaiye holds a PhD in Health Services Research from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, an MPH in Maternal and Child Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a B. Pharmacy from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria.
Her research focuses on addressing socioeconomic, structural, and cultural inequalities impacting maternal and child health. She studies interventions that promote child survival, including vaccination and integrated services, as well as adolescent health, domestic violence, and family planning. Her work employs quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods approaches, emphasizing community engagement and participatory methods.
She is the Principal Investigator on several active grants, including a National Institutes of Health (NIH) study on interpregnancy intervals among African immigrants in the U.S., and a Society of Family Planning project assessing client and provider perspectives on contraceptive side effects. Previously, she led studies on COVID-19 vaccination experiences of Black women in the U.S., uptake of maternal and pediatric RSV and influenza vaccines, and HPV vaccine acceptance in Kano State, Nigeria.
Dr. Olorunsaiye is also a dedicated educator and mentor. She teaches undergraduate and graduate public health courses, including Global Health, International Maternal and Child Health, Program Planning and Evaluation, and Leadership in Public Health. She mentors undergraduate, graduate, and early-career researchers in research methodology, academic writing, and career development.