Ms Heleen Vermandere
Post-doctoral researcher

As a global health researcher with over 10 years of international experience, Heleen is proficient in collecting qualitative and quantitative data in challenging contexts. She combines health sciences, epidemiology and sociology to study health behaviour and to evaluate the impact of health programmes. She has primarily worked on sexual and reproductive health in sub-Saharan Africa, focusing on family planning and infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS and cervical cancer. For her doctoral thesis she evaluated the acceptability and uptake of the HPV vaccine in Kenya. Given her strong interest in gender, she has also conducted studies on female genital mutilation and violence against women in Egypt. She coordinates the work of various students and manages the day-to-day operations of a Horizon2020 project on cervical cancer screening.
Publications of Heleen
2022 Barriers and facilitators to cervical cancer screening among under-screened women in Cuenca, Ecuador : the perspectives of women and health professionalsOlivier Degomme, Kristien Michielsen, Heleen Vermandere
2021 Understanding cervical cancer screening barriers among migrant women : a qualitative study with healthcare and community workers in PortugalHeleen Vermandere
2020 Universal cervical cancer control through a right to health lens : refocusing national policy and programmes on underserved womenOlivier Degomme, Ines Keygnaert, Katrina Perehudoff, Heleen Vermandere
2018 Quality of care in family planning services in rural Mozambique with a focus on long acting reversible contraceptives : a cross-sectional surveyOlivier Degomme, Anna Galle, Heleen Vermandere
2018 Knowledge and practices of general practitioners at district hospitals towards cervical cancer prevention in Burundi, 2015 : a cross-sectional studyHeleen Vermandere
2018 Uptake of three doses of HPV vaccine by primary school girls in Eldoret, Kenya : a prospective cohort study in a malaria endemic settingHeleen Vermandere
2017 Improving contraceptives supply management by addressing the human factorOlivier Degomme, Anna Galle, Heleen Vermandere
2017 The impact of facility audits, evaluation reports and incentives on motivation and supply management among family planning service providers : an interventional study in two districts in Maputo Province, MozambiqueOlivier Degomme, Anna Galle, Heleen Vermandere
2017 Factors associated with HIV testing among men who have sex with men in Western Kenya : a cross-sectional studyHeleen Vermandere
2016 Uptake of the human papillomavirus vaccine in Kenya : testing the health belief model through pathway modeling on cohort dataOlivier Degomme, Kristien Michielsen, Heleen Vermandere
2016 Introduction of HPV vaccination in KenyaHeleen Vermandere
2016 Introduction of HPV vaccination in KenyaHeleen Vermandere
2015 Implementation of an HPV vaccination program in Eldoret, Kenya: results from a qualitative assessment by key stakeholdersOlivier Degomme, Kristien Michielsen, Heleen Vermandere
2014 Determinants of acceptance and subsequent uptake of the HPV vaccine in a cohort in Eldoret, KenyaOlivier Degomme, Kristien Michielsen, Heleen Vermandere