Davide Rasella

Davide Rasella

Institut de Salut Global Barcelona

Social & Behavioural Sciences

I am an ICREA Research Professor and Head of the Global Health Impact Assessment and Evaluation Group (IMPACThealth) at ISGlobal. I hold an MPH and a PhD in Public Health from the Institute of Collective Health in Salvador, Brazil, a Diploma in Tropical Biomedicine from the Antwerp Institute of Tropical Medicine in Belgium, formal training in mathematical modeling from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in the UK, and a Degree in Biotechnologies from the University of Milan in Italy.
For over two decades, I have been dedicated to public health, focusing on vulnerable populations in Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa. My work has ranged from field epidemiology during humanitarian emergencies to academic research evaluating the health impacts of public policies. I am leading large multicountry projects in Spain, Brazil, Ecuador, Colombia, Argentina, and Mexico, and global studies in all LMICs, with evaluations in Mozambique, Gabon, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Bolivia.

Research interests

As a Social Epidemiologist and expert in Health Impact Assessment and Evaluation (HIAE), I developed innovative approaches to demonstrate that improving Social Determinants of Health, strengthening Social Protection policies, and increasing Healthcare Access can substantially alleviate the burden of diseases among vulnerable populations, reducing social and health inequalities. My lines of research comprise:
  • Methods for retrospective (ex post) and prospective (ex ante) health impact assessment and evaluation
  • Compartmental models, microsimulation, and other forecasting approaches
  • Health impacts of social determinants and poverty-relief interventions
  • Health system performance, with a focus on primary health care
  • HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and other poverty-related diseases
  • Child and maternal health
  • Impact of Humanitarian and Development Assistance

Selected publications

- Jesus GS, Gestal PFPS, Silva AF, Cavalcanti DM, Lua I, Ichihara MY, Barreto ML, Boccia D, Sanchez MN & Rasella D 2025, 'Effects of conditional cash transfers on tuberculosis incidence and mortality according to race, ethnicity and socioeconomic factors in the 100 Million Brazilian Cohort', Nat. med. 31, 653–662.
- Cavalcanti DM, Ordoñez JA, da Silva AF, Basterra EL, Moncayo AL, Chivardi C, Hessel P, Sironi AP, de Sousa RP, Campello T, Souza LE & Rasella D 2025, 'Health effects of the Brazilian Conditional Cash Transfer programme over 20 years and projections to 2030: a retrospective analysis and modelling study', Lancet publ health, 10 - 7 - e548 - e558.
- Silva NJ, Paixao ES, Brachowicz N, Barreix G, Landin-Basterra E, Rubio FA, Boccia D, Ribeiro-Silva RC, Barreto ML, Naheed A, Macicame I, Naniche D & Rasella D 2025, 'Early life exposure to economic shocks and association with childhood malnutrition: a pooled analysis of 230 nationwide surveys from 68 low-income and middle-income countries', Lancet glob health, 13 - 8 - e1367 - e1377.
- Cavalcanti DM, de Sales LDF, da Silva AF, Basterra EL, Pena D, Monti C, Barreix G, Silva NJ, Vaz P, Saute F, Fanjul G, Bassat Q, Naniche D, Macinko J & Rasella D 2025, 'Evaluating the impact of two decades of USAID interventions and projecting the effects of defunding on mortality up to 2030: a retrospective impact evaluation and forecasting analysis', Lancet, 406 - 10500 - 283 - 294.
- Rasella D & Silva N 2025, 'Why cash transfers matter for global health-now more than ever', Lancet, 406 - 10520 - 2606 - 2608.
- Rasella D, De Sales LDF, Cavalcanti DM, Nhacolo A & Monti C 2025, 'Global health after USAID cuts - Authors' reply', Lancet, 406 - 10520 - 2629 - 2630.

Selected research activities

  • Dissemination our Lancet study, >1,200 media outlets, including interviews at CNN, BBC, Washington Post, Financial Times, Guardian, El Pais, Le Monde.
  • Two meetings at the European Parliament to advocate for the suspension of the humanitarian and development cuts.