Annual Research Week 2026

Prevent | Protect | Prosper

Organised by the Department of Paediatrics & Child Health in collaboration with the Department of Continuing Professional Education.

Register NowDownlo​ad Programme (PDF)

Pre- & Post-Conference Workshops

Date Time Workshop Titles
Oct 5, 2026 9AM to 5PM
  • Ask Better, Get Better: AI tools in clinical & health research
  • Mastering PICU PAD: A Practical journey through Pain Agitation and Delirium liberation
  • Solve the Case: From Phenotype to Diagnosis-A Practical Approach to Genomic Analysis
  • Waste Management, Safety and Sustainability in Paediatric Healthcare and Research
  • From Death to Diagnosis: A CHAMPS DECODE Workshop on Determining Cause of Death
Oct 5, 2026 9AM to 1PM
  • From awareness to action: Diabesity workshop
Oct 6, 2026 9AM to 5PM
  • Beyond the Diagnosis: A Hands-On Approach to Cerebral Palsy Care
  • Exploring the Microbial Cosmos III: From maternal/infants metagenomics to pathogen genomics
Oct 6, 2026 9AM to 1PM
  • Big Data, Small Patients: Statistical Foundations for Paediatric Research
Oct 6, 2026 9AM to 12PM
  • Balancing Work and Parenting
Oct 6, 2026 10AM to 2PM
  • Retinopathy of Prematurity: Latest Updates, Myths, Prevention & Pitfalls in ROP examination
Oct 7, 2026 9AM to 5PM
  • Mastering Renal Support: Principles and Practice of CRRT in PICU
  • Fundamentals of Clinical Research: Design, Data, and Analysis
  • Breastfeeding Counselling and Support: A Practical Course for Health Professionals and Community-Based Providers
Oct 7, 2026 9AM to 1PM
  • Thinking About a PhD? From Idea to Admission
Oct 7, 2026 9AM to 12PM
  • Beyond Burnout: Building Mental Wellbeing and Moral Resilience for Healthcare Teams
Oct 8, 2026 9AM to 5PM
  • From Sample to Sequence: Harnessing Oxford Nanopore Sequencing to Prevent, Protect and Prosper
  • Transforming Paediatric Brain MRI: Preprocessing to AI-Based Segmentation
Oct 8, 2026 9AM to 1PM
  • Exploring Human Genetic Variants Using Bioinformatics Tools: A Hands-on Workshop
  • Research Ethics and Integrity in Clinical Trials: From Principles to Practice
Oct 8, 2026 9AM to 12PM
  • Prevention and Management of Oxygenator Failure in Paediatric Cardiac Surgery
Oct 8, 2026 2PM to 5PM
  • Cracking the CF Code: A Practical Journey from Diagnosis to Lifelong Care
Oct 9, 2026 9AM to 5PM
  • Paediatric Critical Care Nursing: Emergency Recognition and Response
  • "Gali Ke Khel Se" ECD Tak From Childhood Memories to Early Childhood Development
Oct 9, 2026 9AM to 1PM
  • Genetics in Paediatric Nursing Practice
Oct 9, 2026 9AM to 12PM
  • Navigating the New NIH Biosketch: A Practical Workshop for Researchers
  • From Transcripts to Themes: An Introduction to Qualitative Data Analysis
Oct 12, 2026 9AM to 12PM
  • Trial by Design: Navigating Clinical Trials in Pakistan
Oct 12, 2026 12PM to 4PM
  • From Event to Improvement: Clinical Event Debriefing for Safer Paediatric Care
Oct 13, 2026 9AM to 5PM
  • Pakistan Neonatal Resuscitation Course (PNRC)
Oct 13, 2026 9AM to 1PM
  • AI-Accelerated V&V: A Half-Day Intensive for Clinical & Research Laboratories Compliant Verification & Validation, Powered by AI-Augmented Workflows
Oct 13, 2026 2PM to 5PM
  • From Burden to Prevention: Using GBD Data to Study Paediatric Injuries
Oct 15, 2026 10AM to 1PM
  • Project Management Essentials for Healthcare & Research Teams

Registration Deadline: 30th September, 2026 | For inquiries, please contact: Asif Ali (asif.ali@aku.edu)​​​​​

​​​Conference Day

 
DATE: Saturday, October 10, 2026
TIME: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
VENUE: Auditorium, Aga Khan University
TIME PROGRAMME PRESENTER
08:30-09:00 Registration
09:00-09:05 Tilawat-e-Quran Pak Student
09:05-09:20 Overview of Paediatric Research Portfolio Dr. Imran Nisar Vice Chair & Associate Professor
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health
Nutrition & Early Childhood Development
SESSION CO-CHAIRS:
  • Dr. Romaina Iqbal, Professor - Community Health Sciences, AKU
  • Dr. Naveed Bhutto, Senior Public Health Specialist - Sindh Social Protection Authority
  • Dr. Salman Kirmani, Professor - Chair & Director, Division of Women and Child Health, AKU
09:20-09:40 MOMCare, MUMTA, Microbiome Dr. Fyezah Jehan Professor & Chair
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
09:40-10:00 From Nutrition to Development: results from the Benazir Nashonuma Programme (BNP) effectiveness Evaluation Dr. Shah Muhammad Assistant Professor
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
10:00-10:30 SHORT TALKS
Early Childhood Development: Nurturing Care Framework Dr. Seema Lassi Assistant Professor
Human Development Programme, AKU
Rethinking Nutrition for the Future of Human Health Dr. Junaid Iqbal Associate Professor
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
Implementation Barriers and Facilitators of a Locally Available Food (LAF) Intervention in Pakistan: Insights from the NUTRI-MAM Trial Mr. Irfan Ghaffar Research Specialist
Paediatrics & Child Health, AKU
10:30-10:40 Question & Answer Session
Immunization & Infectious Disease
SESSION CO-CHAIRS:
  • Dr. Danish Siddiqui, Chair - Obstetrics & Gynaecology, AKU
  • Dr. Khalid Shafi, Associate Professor - Dow University of Health Sciences
  • Dr. Tahir Yousafzai, Associate Professor - Paediatrics & Child Health, AKU
10:40-11:00 'From Ratodero to Now': The changing Epidemiology of Pediatric HIV in Pakistan and the Research we need to prevent the next outbreak Dr. Fatima Mir Professor & Section Head
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
11:00-11:20 Maternal Vaccine Dr. Imran Nisar Vice Chair & Associate Professor
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
11:20-11:50 SHORT TALKS
The Immunogenicity and Tolerability of Sabin Strain Inactivated Poliovirus Vaccine Administered with or Without Routine Infant Vaccines Dr. Ali Faisal Saleem Vice Chair & Professor
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
Salmonella Paratyphi A - Controlled Human Infection Model Dr. Farah Qamar Professor & Associate Dean
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
Population-Based Measles Mortality and Vaccine: Effectiveness Against Death Among Children Under Five in Pakistan Dr. Raheel Allana Senior Instructor
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
11:50-12:00 Question & Answer Session
12:00-13:30 Poster & E-poster Viewing Session / Lunch Break
13:30-13:40 The 30-Second Doctor
AI Transforming Healthcare
SESSION CO-CHAIRS:
  • Dr. Muhammad Shahid Shamim, Professor & Associate Dean - Educational Development, AKU
  • Dr. Bilal Ahmed Usmani, Assistant Professor - Community Health Sciences, AKU
  • Dr. Momin Kazi, Assistant Professor - Paediatrics & Child Health, AKU
13:40-14:00 AI Transforming Healthcare: From Clinical Evidence to Health System Impact Dr. Ihsan Ayyub Qazi Professor of Computer Science
Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS)
14:00-14:20 Large Language Models (LLMs) for Medical Research: three examples and some reflections Dr. James Carpenter Professor of Medical Statistics
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
14:20-14:50 SHORT TALKS
From Patterns to Prediction: Artificial Intelligence for Personalized Risk Assessment in the Pediatric ICU Dr. Naveed ur Rehman Associate Professor
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
IMPALA: Intrapartum Monitoring Platform: leAding childbirth safety Dr. Zahra Hoodbhoy Associate Professor
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
Age-Specific Brain Templates from Ultra-Low-Field MRI: Enhancing pediatric neuroimaging and alignment in resource-limited settings Kulsoom Khan Programmer Analyst
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
14:50-15:00 Question & Answer Session
Clinical Research
SESSION CO-CHAIRS:
  • Dr. Saba Shahid, Chair - Paediatric Services, Indus Hospital & Health Network
  • Dr. Qalab Abbas, Professor, Paediatrics & Child Health, AKU
  • Dr. Shabina Ariff, Professor, Paediatrics & Child Health, AKU
15:00-15:20 Question. Investigate. Transform: The Changing Landscape, Challenges and Opportunities in Medical Education Research Dr. Sana Saeed Vice Chair & Associate Professor
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
15:20-15:40 Quality & Safety Research in Pediatric Critical Care: Current Evidence, Existing Gaps, and Future Research Priorities Dr. Asad Latif Professor & Chair
Department of Anesthesiology, AKU Dr. Nadir Ijaz Assistant Professor, Pediatrics
Yale School of Medicine
15:40-16:10 SHORT TALKS
From Recipients to Partners: Families in Implementation Science - Lessons from research in the US and Pakistan Saleema Khowaja Manager
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
Kangaroo Mother Care KMC Demonstration Project in Pakistan: Supporting Implementation and Scaling
Early Detection of late onset neonatal sepsis by employing sepsis prediction score Nimra Chohan Resident
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, AKU
16:10-16:20 Question & Answer Session
Closing Ceremony
16:20-16:35 Prize and certificate distribution Dr. Fyezah Jehan Chair & Professor
Department of Paediatrics and Child Health
16:35-16:45 Vote of Thanks Dr. Imran Nisar Chair - Annual Research Week 2026
Refreshment