Dr. Elizabeth Whittaker

Biography

Liz Whittaker is a Professor of Practice in Paediatric Infectious Diseases and Immunology at Imperial College London. She divides her time between the Department of Paediatric Infectious Diseases and Immunology and St. Mary’s Hospital in London, where she serves as a consultant. Liz is also the Director of Research at West London Children's Healthcare, collaborating with the Imperial College's Centre of Paediatrics and Child Health to ensure research is integrated into patient care. As a national clinical lead for high consequence infectious diseases in children, she chairs steering committees focused on improving diagnosis and treatment outcomes for conditions such as tuberculosis (TB), leading the British Association for Paediatric Tuberculosis. Dr. Whittaker's research focuses on the ontogeny of infant immune responses to various pathogens. She supervises PhD students examining factors affecting TB susceptibility and is involved in vaccine hesitancy research. Liz earned her PhD with a project on immune responses to mycobacteria under the supervision of distinguished professors at Imperial College, and she has a strong clinical background, having trained as a paediatrician in London and completed various significant fellowship programs. Additionally, she has completed the Gorgas Diploma Course in Clinical Tropical Medicine and is a member of several influential networks in her field.

Research Interests

Experience