Andre Charlett

Dr Andre Charlett is the Interim Director of Statistics, Modelling and Bioinformatics Department at the Health Protection Agency Collindale where he provides an integrated statistical, modelling, health economics and bioinformatics resource to the Centre for Infections, Local and Regional Services, and to other centres within the Health Protection Agency.  

Andre is involved in CIPM as a co-supervisor for Rachel Soutar's PhD project  to investigate the use of statistical models to understand the spread of hospital infections.  In particular she will be carrying out a comprehensive literature review of “cluster” detection of HCAI and other infectious diseases and will then apply selected methods to currently available HCAI and simulated data to understand their relative performance in several settings.

Rachel will  be working under Andre's direction to undertake a survey of phenotyping and genotyping data currently being performed to understand how the typed isolates relate to the population from which they originate and determine their utility in detecting clusters and monitoring the spread of infection in real-time. She will also develop statistical approaches to monitor the spread of emerging pathogens both within and between hospitalsand within specialist, high risk areas such as neonatal intensive care units.

Background

Following a mathematics degree and a Msc in Statistics and information technology, Andre worked for the MRC where he worked as satistician to a major programme of research that quantified and utilised objective measurements of the cardinal signs of Parkinson’s disease.

In 1993 he took up the first of a number of posts with the HPA statistics unit becoming interium head in June 2005.  The purpose of the unit is to provide statistical support,establishing collaborative projects both within and outside of the Agency, undertaking and facilitating research and development, and providing training and resources that are delivered by the members of the Statistics Unit.  Ensuring the continued delivery of transmission dynamic modelling, health economic and bioinformatics expertise within the Agency.  Developing closer interactions between the bioinformaticians, statisticians, and mathematical modellers, ensuring that developments in these areas can be utilised and focused on relevant projects of health protection importance.