Alka Dev, DrPH, MHS
Public health demographer Alka Dev, PhD, MHS, is an assistant professor of The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice.
Following her passion for health equity, Dev worked for more than 20 years as a global health professional, serving the healthcare needs of some of the poorest people in the world. Between 2016-2019, she led the establishment of a neonatal ward at a large public hospital in southern Haiti, focusing on improving survival for sick newborns. This work included developing models for integrating maternal and newborn health services, as well as creating a neonatal nursing training module in English and French.
Currently, Dev is turning her research focus to maternal health equity in the United States and abroad, especially the harmful effects of resource uncertainty or scarcity during pregnancy and its impact on health outcomes for both mothers and newborns.
Prior to joining The Dartmouth Institute in her newly appointed role, she worked for several years at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center as a research associate and scientist—focusing on her work in Haiti as a member of the Dartmouth International Health Group.
During part of that time, Dev was an assistant professor at Geisel, serving as a course director and teaching several equity-focused courses to MD and MPH students. She was also the social justice curriculum advisor at The Dartmouth Institute and co-chaired Geisel’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.
Dev’s international professional experience includes: serving as director of program and business strategy for the African Services Committee; global health consultant for the World Health Organization, United Nations Development Program, Stop TB Partnership, and PATH; program director for Doctors of the World-USA; and deputy director of Helen Keller International.
She holds a dual bachelor’s degree in chemistry and women’s studies from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, a master’s in health science from Johns Hopkins University, and a doctorate in public health from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.