About Dr Abdulrazaq Yusuf Ahmed
Dr. Abdulrazaq Yusuf Ahmed (widely known as Dr. Jalaaludiin) is a Somali physician, public health specialist, and health systems leader with over fifteen years of experience in advancing health financing, hospital governance, emergency preparedness, and evidence-informed policy reform in fragile and conflict-affected settings. Based in Mogadishu, Somalia, he is currently Director General of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), where he is leading efforts to establish a transparent, efficient, and accountable insurance system that strengthens strategic purchasing, expands financial risk protection, and accelerates progress toward Universal Health Coverage. His professional profile reflects sustained engagement in health systems strengthening, clinical governance, and outcomes-oriented reform.
Dr. Ahmed has served as Director General and Chief Executive Officer of DeMartino National Public Hospital, a 200-bed tertiary and teaching facility, where he has led major institutional reforms, strengthened emergency and maternal services, improved infection prevention systems, and ensured continuity of essential care during prolonged crises. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he managed both facility-level and national responses, serving as National Incident Manager and coordinating multi-agency surveillance, response, and service delivery mechanisms. Under his leadership, more than 32,000 COVID-19 cases were managed while maintaining core hospital operations.
His career includes senior leadership roles within Somalia’s Federal Ministry of Health, including Director of Medical Services, Deputy Director General, and Director of Human Resources for Health. In these positions, he oversaw nationwide clinical services, regulatory frameworks, pharmaceutical governance, workforce development, and quality improvement initiatives. He has been recognized for strengthening controlled substances regulation and contributing to national policy alignment with international standards.
In parallel with his executive work, Dr. Ahmed is deeply engaged in academic and professional development. He serves as Coordinator and Senior Lecturer in postgraduate training, teaching epidemiology, research methodology, and tropical medicine, while mentoring early-career researchers and supporting international academic partnerships. His research portfolio includes more than thirty-five peer-reviewed publications and over one hundred twenty-five citations, focusing on health financing, economic evaluation, One Health systems, pandemic preparedness, hospital quality, and mental health in post-conflict contexts.
Dr. Ahmed holds advanced qualifications in medicine, public health, and health management, including a PhD in Healthcare Economics, an MPH, and an MSc in Health Management. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society for Public Health, the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, and the Federation of Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Associations. He has represented Somalia in regional and global forums, including as a distinguished speaker at the World Hospital Congress.
Through his leadership, research, and advocacy, Dr. Ahmed contributes to strengthening health systems performance, promoting value-based care, and improving population health outcomes in resource-constrained environments.
Recent Comments
Thank you to the Research Communities team for this thoughtful guidance. A strong “Behind the Paper” post is more than a summary it is a bridge between method and meaning, showing readers why the question mattered, how the work was actually done, and what the findings change in practice. In public health and health systems especially in fragile settings such transparency builds trust, accelerates learning, and helps evidence travel from the field to the policy desk.
When I write these pieces, I anchor them on nine principles:
1. open with the real-world problem the study set out to solve;
2. share the turning point—what surprised us and reshaped our approach;
3. demystify methods and trade-offs, including ethics and data safeguards;
4. acknowledge collaborators, communities, and institutions by name;
5. describe challenges and pivots candidly (what didn’t work and why);
6. translate results into three concrete practice or policy implications;
7. offer reusable assets (tools, instruments, code or protocols where permissible);
8. include one image or figure that tells the story at a glance;
9. close with next steps and an invitation to collaborate or replicate.
These guidelines align closely with how impactful science should be communicated clear, humane, and actionable. I look forward to contributing posts that model this standard and help convert research into improvements in care, equity, and system resilience.