Spotlight on a Researcher – Dr. Farzanna Haffizulla
Farzanna Haffizulla, MD, MACP, FAMWA is the Chair of internal medicine at NSU’s Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine. As a board-certified Internist, Dr. Haffizulla runs her own concierge, internal medicine hybrid private practice, which she founded in 2008. She is a leader in advocating for minority health initiatives, promoting health equity of underserved communities, and facilitating diversity representation in healthcare professions. She founded NSU’s Caribbean Diaspora Health Initiative — an organization that strives to improve unmet health and education needs among the Caribbean diaspora of south Florida (https://nsucaribbeanhealth.com/). She serves as the Principal Investigator (PI) for the outreach program and research study titled “Caribbean Diaspora Healthy Nutrition Outreach Project (CDHNOP)” aimed at improving health and nutrition among Caribbean immigrants. The purpose of the CDHNOP study is to quantify “social determinants of health” relevant to the Caribbean population of Broward County, which would help identify the social and/or economic conditions that impact people’s health. This will build the foundation for developing culturally appropriate materials to distribute health information regarding proper nutrition among this demographic group.
The findings derived from Dr. Haffizulla’s work involving nutrition among the Caribbean population were published in a peer-reviewed article in the Annals of Global Health. The findings reported in this publication indicate that heart disease, stroke, cancer, and diabetes are the leading causes of mortality in the Caribbean population of Broward County. This demographic group was also found to have a higher rate of obesity relative to the national average. The CDHNOP project team developed information for better nutrition and dietary habits that could address these medical issues. To this end, Dr. Haffizulla and other researchers classified various food items based on nutritional qualities, fat content, sodium content, and sugar content and developed dietary educational information appropriate for the Caribbean diaspora.
Members of the CDHNOP project team from left to right: Regine Kanski, division director, Broward Regional Health Planning Council; Dr. Angelika Schlanger, public health specialist, UF/IFAS Extension Family Nutrition Program; Alyssa K. Eason, director of student licensing and credentialing, NSU MD; Kristen Sooklal, program coordinator, NSU MD; Dr. Farzanna S. Haffizulla, assistant dean for community and global health, NSU MD; and George L. Hanbury II, President and CEO, NSU.
Dr. Haffizulla’s work pertaining to racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare is not limited to nutrition in the Caribbean population of south Florida. Last year, during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the US, she served as the lead investigator in a study that examined distributions of COVID-19 outcomes among different races and ethnic groups in various U.S. states. The findings of this study, published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, indicate that COVID-related incidence as well as mortality is higher among racial and ethnic minorities relative to their corresponding proportion in the state population. This study led by Dr. Haffizulla demonstrated how racial and societal disparities not only have cultural and economic implications, but also pose major issues regarding public health and social justice.
Dr. Haffizulla is passionate about improving health equity and believes that a major reason for this disparity stems from lack of racial and ethnic minority professionals in healthcare fields. To rectify this lack of diversity, Dr. Haffizulla is currently working on developing an electronic platform that can provide information and guidance regarding entering the health professions to students from predominantly underrepresented racial and ethnic minority groups. The purpose of this digital invention is to address the shortcomings in diversity in healthcare professions and provide information and support to students during the process of applying and going through medical education, ultimately supporting them in becoming successful healthcare professionals. This innovative mobile application, called Mentoring Minorities in Medicine or M3 App, will bring mentorship and career guidance to minority students to improve their chances of success while navigating through education and career development in a healthcare field. This app will serve as a personalized, gamified mobile-enabled web application that will be populated with checklists, career support resources, and strategies to support minority students in healthcare fields.
In addition to being a researcher, inventor, and physician, Dr. Haffizulla has served in leadership roles in the American Medical Women’s Association, where she was the president in 2014-2015. She is passionate about serving students, giving back to the community, and has served as the speaker in events organized by various organizations such as the United Way of Broward and Gilda’s Club of South Florida. She also serves as a physician-scientist full board member for Advarra’s Institutional Review Board and as a board member of the American Diabetes Association-South Florida and the March of Dimes.
Dr. Haffizulla’s dedication and efforts in the field of public health and involvement in the community enable her to continue conducting research, serving students at NSU, and making a positive impact on improving health equity in underserved communities.