Dr. Rand Carpenter joins MDP

Dr. Rand Carpenter, a medical epidemiologist,  has joined as the Deputy Director of the Mectizan® Donation Program. He is primarily responsible for managing MDP’s technical operations. This includes working with partner countries and the Mectizan Expert Committee to review applications for Mectizan and monitor the supply chain, as well as coordinating with Merck and Co., Inc., Kenilworth, N.J., U.S.A., GSK, the World Health Organization, and NGO partners to ensure prompt delivery to country programs. Dr. Carpenter provides scientific support to the programme by promoting good medical practices and safety prevention, preparedness, management and reporting.

Prior to joining MDP, Dr. Carpenter served five years as Kenya country director for Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), a global faith-based relief and development organization, where he led a staff of 15 technical experts in supporting community partners and projects involved in health, agriculture, education, and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH). Dr. Carpenter began his career in public health during 2001-2005 as a programme advisor in Haiti for MCC and IMA World Health in a regional project that initiated mass drug administration for the elimination of lymphatic filariasis. In 2005, he joined the Epidemic Intelligence Service at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, and, after completing the two-year fellowship, worked as a medical epidemiologist and the State Public Health Veterinarian in the Tennessee Department of Health in Nashville until 2013.

Dr. Carpenter earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine in 1998 from the University of Georgia, U.S.A., and a bachelor’s degree in Molecular Biology from Vanderbilt University, U.S.A., in 1988.