Infectious Disease Epidemiology Postdoctoral Candidate

Mustapha Murtala Nyame

Email: ********@*****.**.*** Cell: +1-803-***-****

Personal Statement

Dedicated and versatile public health professional with a passion for infectious disease epidemiology and preventive medicine. Experienced in laboratory research, teaching, and community service, with the ability to work collaboratively in multidisciplinary teams. Committed to making meaningful contributions to global health.

Education

Ph.D. Candidate, Epidemiology Aug 2023 – Present

Arnold School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA

Relevant coursework: Advanced Analytic Methods in Epidemiology, Advanced Methodological Theories in Epidemiology, Intermediate Epidemiologic Methods, Concepts and Methods in Epidemiology, Principles of Pharmacoeconomics, Principles of Pharmacoepidemiology, Discrete Data Analysis, Longitudinal Data Analysis, Survival analysis, Intermediate Biostatistics, Advanced SAS,

Master of Public Health (MPH) Sept 2018 – May 2020

Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China

Key courses: Advanced Tropical Medicine, Epidemiology, Food and Nutrition, Health Promotion, Health Economics, Health Care Management, Toxicology Volunteer: HIV prevalence survey among international residents and students in Guangzhou

B.Sc. Herbal Medicine Aug 2012 – May 2017

Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana

Courses: Statistics, Microbiology, Biochemistry, Pharmacology, Immunology, Public Health

General Science (High School) Aug 2007 – May 2011

Sunyani Senior High School, Sunyani, Ghana

Subjects: Physics, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, English

Work Experience

Consultant Jan – May 2026

Prisma Health Richland

University of South Carolina

Graduate Research Assistant Aug 2024 – Present

Nolan Laboratory for Vector-Borne & Zoonotic Diseases Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics University of South Carolina

Graduate Teaching Assistant Aug 2023 – May, 2024

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics University of South Carolina

Course taught: Epi 701 & 417

Lecturer Sept 2022 – Aug 2023

Department of Nursing and Midwifery, College of Health Sciences, Garden City University, Ashanti, Ghana Course taught: Chemistry

Teaching and Research Assistant

Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, KNUST Aug 2017 – Sept 2018; June – Sept 2022

Facilitated laboratory sessions for undergraduate students

Conducted lab experiments in organic chemistry, drug assays, and compound identification

Assisting my supervisors, undergraduate and graduate student with their research

Internships

Nolan Laboratory, USC May – Aug (2024, 2025 & 2026)

Participated in ALL IN SC (Statewide Vector-borne disease Surveillance).

Sample processing, recording, analysis, report writing and interpretation of results, presentations.

Research design, writing and editing

Kumasi South Hospital, Ghana June – Aug 2014, 2015, 2016 Participated in hospital operations, ward rounds, training, and pharmacy support

Volunteering and Community Service

Volunteer, ABC Kids Fitness: Youth Sport Club, Columbia Midtown SDA, Columbia, SC (Feb 2026 – present)

Volunteer, Experienced TA panelist: University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC (August 2025)

Volunteer, Project: KAP regarding Mosquito-Borne Diseases Among South Carolina Residents, Columbia, SC (May 2025– present)

Volunteer, Project: Medication Adherence as a Mediator of the Association between Racial Disparities and Emergency Department Visit among South Carolina Residents (May 2025–Present)

Volunteer, HIV Screening, Guangdong Center for Skin Disease and STI Control, Guangzhou, China (Sept 2018)

Volunteer, Community Health Cleaning, Sunyani Senior High, Sunyani, B/A, Ghana (2008)

Volunteer, Community Health Cleaning, Good Foundation Preparatory School, Sunyani, B/A, Ghana (2004)

Training

Southeastern Center of Excellence in Vector-borne Disease Online Tick Course University, Jan 26, 2026

HarvardX: Causal Diagrams: Draw Your Assumptions Before Your Conclusions (June 6– 14, 2025)

Southeastern Center of Excellence in Vector-borne Disease Online Tick Course University, May 8–10, 2024

Doctoral Seminar A and B: Academic writing and Scientific Literature Evaluation (Aug – Dec 2024 & Jan–May 2025)

Honors and Awards

1.Best Agricultural Science Student Award May 2009

2.Among the Top 5 Best Students of the 2017 Bachelor of Science Herbal Medicine, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. May, 2017

3.Chinese Scholarship Council (MOFCOM) Award: Full funding scholarship for the Master of Public Health Program

Sept 2018- July 2020

4.Among the Top 5 Best Students of the 2018 Master's of Public Health Batch, School of Public Health, School of International Education, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China. July 2020

5.AMCA Young Professionals: Industry Shadowing Program travel stipend Award (amount of $1,000)

Seminars

1.Prevention and Control of Insect-Borne Infectious Diseases (June 25–28, 2022, Online)

2.MPH Education and Management, Conghua, China (Jan 10–11, 2019)

3.“Cause and Consequence of Adverse Perinatal Outcomes in Vulnerable Populations” Speaker: Nandita Perumal, PhD. Date: 10/1/2023

4.“Personalized Gene Regulatory Networks to Understand Heterogeneity in Disease Mechanisms” Speaker: Enakshi Saha, PhD. Date: 11/6/2023.

5.“Using Novel Data Harmonization Techniques to Reveal Multilevel Determinants of Childhood Obesity Inequities In the U.S.” Speaker: Dr. Danielle Krobath. Date: 11/12/2023

6.“Place Matters: Utility of Geospatial Data in Health Research” Speaker: Dr.Katherine Theall. Date: 11/19/2023.

7.“Addressing Inequities in Perinatal and Pediatric Health in the Global Context.” Speaker: Nandita Perumal. Date: 11/23/2023.

8.“Role of Cross-Species Transmission and Effect of Keystone Species on A Multi-Host-Vector System: Lessons from Wild Rodents” Speaker: Paulina Pontife, PhD. Date: 11/27/2023.

9.“A Bayesian Machine Learning Approach for Estimating Heterogeneous Survivor Causal Effects: Applications to A Critical Care Trial” Speaker: Fan Li, Ph.D. Date: 12/7/2023.

10.“Information Under the Curve: A Modern Approach to Leveraging Area Under Curves in Survival Analysis”,

Speaker: Mitchell Paukner, PhD. Date: 12/15/2023.

11.“Connection in Care: Global Implementation Research for Transforming Health Care Delivery and Experience of Prenatal and Postpartum Care” Speaker: Deborah Billings, PhD. Date: 01/19, 2024.

12.“Bridging the Gap: Innovative Deep Learning for New Insights and Prediction Capabilities from Complex Biomedical Data” Speaker: Albert Montilo, PhD. Date: 01/12/2024.

13.“Leveraging and Partitioning of Polygenic Risk Scores Identifies Proteins Underlying Cancer Risks. Speaker: Diptavo Dutto, PhD. Date: 01/22/2024.

14.“Applied Epidemiology at the Intersection of Early Childhood and Public Health” Speaker: Dr. Chelsea Richard. Date:01/27/2024.

15.“Continuous Statistical Models for Modern Computational Neuroscience” Speaker: William Consagra, PhD. Date: 01/19/2025.

16.“Finding the Weak Link: Transmission Dynamics of Emerging and Re-Emerging Vector-Borne Disease”

Speaker: Kyndall Braumuller, PhD. Date: 01/30/2025.

17.“Spatial Epidemiology of Vector-Borne Disease: The Role of Environmental Heterogeneity” Speaker: Brandon Hollingsworth, PhD. Date: 02/5/2025.

18.“Applying Epidemiology Methods to Study the Role of Biological and Modifiable Factors in Liver Disease and Cancer Prevention” Speaker: Xiaotao Rony Zhang: MD, PhD. Date: 02/12/2025.

19.“Technology-Mediated Epidemiologic Approaches for HIV Prevention: A Focus on Alcohol and Substance Use” Speaker: Dr. Drew Westmoreland. Date: 02/19/2025.

20.“Medicaid Managed Care Plan Implementation Of Regulatory Policies For Opioid Use Disorder Treatment”

Speaker: Christina Andrews, PhD. Date: 04/05/2025.

21.“Context Matters: Incorporating Space, Place and Scale in Population Health Intervention Research: Speaker: Dr. Varun Goel. Date: 03/17/202

Ongoing Projects

Chao Cai & Murtala, N. M. Racial disparities in emergency department utilization among patients with Schizophrenia in South Carolina: Medication Adherence as a Mediator

Chao Cai & Murtala, N. M. Medication adherence between long-acting injectable and oral antipsychotic medication in South Carolina Medicaid Beneficiaries with Schizophrenia: A prevalent new user design by time-dependent propensity score-sequential matching analysis.

Murtala, N. M and Prisma Health. Evaluation of a composite of VTE events or bleeding events during inpatient post-operative admission for patients who received ASA inpatients after surgery vs those who received LMWH.

Publications

1.Wang, L., Murtala, N. M., Hu, K., et al. (2024). Prediction of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) as potential substrates of various human CYP enzymes and laboratory test of BDE-99 for its metabolism-activated mutagenicity. Toxicology, 509, 153992.

2.Brown, M. J., Murtala, N. M., Amoatika, D., et al. (2022). Clinical and sociodemographic characteristics of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (AD/ADRD) among people living with HIV: a cross-sectional analysis. AIDS, 10-1097.

Manuscript under review

1.Chao, C., Murtala, N. M., Varma, S. C., et al. (2026). Antipsychotic Adherence as a Mediator of Racial Disparities in Emergency Department Utilization in Schizophrenia. JAMA Network Open (JNO), JNO26-0959-T

Manuscripts under preparation

1.Murtala, N. M., Nolan, M. S., et al. (2026). The History Narrative of Mosquito-borne disease in South Carolina: Past Lessons and Future Recommendations.

2.Murtala, N. M., Nolan, M. S., et al. (2026). Knowledge, Conspiracy beliefs, Public Perceptions, and Scientific Sentiments regarding Mosquito-borne diseases among South Carolina Residents: A Cross-Sectional Study

3.Murtala, N. M., Nolan, M. S., et al. (2026). The Ecological Drivers of the Presence and Abundance of Six Medically Relevant Aedes Species in Beaufort and Charleston, South Carolina’s Coastal Region.

4.Murtala, N. M., Nolan, M. S., et al. (2026). The Ecological Determinant of the Presence and Abundance of Culiseta Melanura Mosquito Species in Beaufort and Charleston, South Carolina’s Coastal Region.

5.Chiara Huber, Carolyn Ellison, Hannah Young, Celeste Caulder, Tobin R. Moss, Daniel J. Cunningham, Murtala N.M, Chao Cai . (2026). Thromboprophylaxis Strategies and Transitions of Care Opportunities for Orthopedic Surgery Patients.

6.Murtala, N. M., et al. (2026). Association between alcohol use, alcohol with brief intervention and colorectal cancer screening participation among USA adults ( age 45-75): A cross-sectional study using 2022 BRFSS Dateset.

Conference Abstract

1.Assessment of Gender, Racial/Ethnic, and Cognitive Disparities in ACEs, Depression, and Life Satisfaction among US Older Adults

Presented at APHA 2024 Annual Meeting

Co-authors: Monique Brown, Medinat Osinubi, Nyame Mustapha Murtala, Kimson Johnson, Steven Cohen

2.Medication Adherence as a Mediator of Racial Disparity in Emergency Department Utilization Among Patients with Schizophrenia.

Presented at ISPE 2025 Annual Meeting

Co-authors: Nyame Mustapha Murtala, Chandana Sai Chidrala, Sri Alluri, Chao Cai

3.Knowledge, Conspiracy beliefs, Public Perception and Scientific Sentiments Regarding Mosquito-borne Diseases and Climatic Change among South Carolina Residents.

To be presented at the AMCA 2026 Annual Meeting

Co-authors: Kyndall Braumuller, Hollingsworth Brandon, Melissa Nolan

4.Evaluation of Thromboprophylaxis Strategies for Orthopedic Surgery Patients.

To be presented at DiscoverUSC 2026

Co-authors: Chiara Huber, Carolyn Ellison, Hannah Young, Celeste Caulder, Tobin R. Moss, Daniel J. Cunningham, Mustapha Murtala Nyame, Chao Cai

5.Evaluation of Thromboprophylaxis Strategies for Orthopedic Surgery Patients.

To be presented at Southeastern Resident conference 2026

Co-authors: Chiara Huber, Carolyn Ellison, Hannah Young, Celeste Caulder, Tobin R. Moss, Daniel J. Cunningham, Mustapha Murtala Nyame, Chao Cai

Class projects

1.Murtala, N. M. (2024). Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of R21/Matrix-M Malaria Vaccination and Malaria Prevention Strategies Among Children in Ghana.

2.Murtala, N. M. Vasco Chikwasha, Sarmin Sultana. (2025). Association between SNAP Participation and Depression Among Youth and Young Adults with Diabetes: A Longitudinal Analysis

3.Murtala, N. M. and Ashok Khanal. (2026). Time to Clinical Progression in AZT-Naïve HIV-1 patients: A secondary Analysis ACTG 175

4.Murtala, N. M. (2026). Spatial Distribution of Aedes albopictus Abundance and Its Association with Population Density in Beaufort County, South Carolina, for the Years 2021 and 2024

5.Murtala, N. M. and Rashidi Hadi. (2025). Association between HEI and gestational weight gain: a propensity score-matched study

Skills and Abilities

Strong communication, writing and interpersonal skills

Attention to detail and accuracy

Problem-solving and critical thinking

Laboratory skills: cytotoxicity and micronuclei assay

Team collaboration and independent work

Decision analytic modeling

Comparative effectiveness analysis

Budget impact analysis

Electronic surveys

Community outreach

Cell culture

Honors and Awards

Chinese Scholarship Council (MOFCOM) Award – Full funding for Master’s Program (2018–2020)

Memberships and Certifications

Ghana Herbal Medical Student Association

Certificate in Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL)

SECVBD Tick University Training Certificate

HarvardX: Causal Diagrams: Draw Your Assumptions Before Your Conclusions Certificate

American Mosquito Control Association

South Carolina Mosquito Control Association

Hazardous Waste Competency

Risk Mitigation and Management

The Importance of International Collaboration

Bloodborne Pathogen for Lab

Biosafety Level 2 for Labs

Chemical and Laboratory Safety

CITI Program Course

Other Skills and Competencies

SPSS

Autodock Vina 14.2

Microsoft Office

Advanced SAS

R Studio

Qualtrics

PCR & ELISA

Dagitty

Python

ArcGIS Pro

QGIS

GeoDa

SaTScan

Hobbies

Teaching Volunteering Reading Singing

References

Prof. Liu Yungang

Department of Toxicology, SMU, Guangzhou, China Email: *******@***.***.** Mobile: +86-130********

Prof. Samuel Nkansah

Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, KNUST, Ghana Email: ********@*****.*** *********@*****.***.**

Prof. Linda J. Hazlett

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, USC

Email: ********@*******.**.*** Mobile: +1-803-***-****

Associate Prof. Melissa Nolan

Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, USC

Email: *******@*******.**.*** Mobile: +1-803-***-****

Assistant Prof. Chao Cai

Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Outcome Sciences (CPOS), College of Pharmacy, USC Email: ****@*******.**.*** Mobile: +1-803-***-****

Contact this candidate