Lindonne Telesford, MSPH, DrPH
Assistant Professor, Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine
Biography
Dr. Lindonne Telesford is an Assistant Dean in the School of Graduate Studies and an Associate Professor in the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine at St. George’s University’s School of Medicine. Her public health research is groundbreaking and brings innovations to the Caribbean region.
One of her most outstanding works was conducting the first study in Grenada and supporting other Caribbean countries to estimate the prevalence and burden of foodborne diseases, for which she was awarded a Leaders Award by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Defense Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center. She led the innovative pilot project to transform biological wastewater from a healthcare institution into a resource for agriculture production, expected to be a transformative climate change adaptation for the health and productive sectors in the region. Through grant funding, she assessed the performance of an engineered glass product in the Caribbean agricultural environment, pending its introduction to the region. She continues research in water technologies and agro-health. Dr. Telesford conducted the first study in Grenada to investigate the relationships between the socioeconomic characteristics of farmers and the use of agrochemicals at levels that were found to be hazardous to human health. She also works closely with regional and international organizations to develop and pilot methodologies for climate change vulnerability profiling of Caribbean populations. She is a principal investigator in two regional cancer studies in the Caribbean.
Dr. Telesford is co-editor of the book titled Public Health Themes in Grenada and the Caribbean Region, which galvanized major research and called for attention to addressing public health challenges in the region. She was selected to bring public health experience in drafting sections of the Grenada National Sustainable Development Plan, 2020-2035, and is among the first group of researchers contributing to the development of health national adaptation plans for Caribbean countries, drawing on scientific information from climate change. Her work is also featured in the Climate Change and Health Country Profiles for Grenada and St. Lucia, posted on the World Health Organization website.
Dr. Telesford has several publications, presents regularly at scientific conferences, and is a recipient of research grants from regional and international organizations. She is a Windward Islands Research and Education Foundation Research Fellow. Dr. Telesford holds a Doctor of Public Health degree from Walden and a Master of Science in Public Health degree from St. George’s University.
Contact Information
473-439-2000 x 3078
Areas of Interest
- Environmental exposures and cancer
- Biological wastewater transformation
- Impact-based heat-health threshold methodology development
- Burden of illness studies (community and national levels)
- Agro-health risk in farming and non-farming populations
- Water quality profiling
- Antibiotic stewardship in food animal production and human health risk linkage
- Population vulnerability profiling (related to climate change)
- Climate change and ecosystem impacts
- Adaptation strategies for health-influencing sectors
- Environmental pollutants of One Health interest
Affiliations
- CUGH Global Health Competency Subcommittee - Member
- International Society of Environmental Epidemiology (ISEE) – Member and Special Interest Group Lead
- Association of Schools and Programs in Public Health (ASPPH) – Student Affairs Representative
- African Caribbean Cancer Consortium (AC3) - Member
- National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) – Member
- Grenada Pesticide Control Board – Member
- Consortium of Universities for Global Health - Global Health Competency Subcommittee
- Windward Islands Research & Education Foundation (WINDREF) – Research Fellow
Selected Publications
- Glasgow L, Forde M, Brow D, Mahoney C, Fletcher S, Rodrigo S. Antibiotic Use in Poultry Production in Grenada. Vet Med Int. 2019. doi: 10.1155/2019/6785195.
- Glasgow, L., Anderson, D., & German Gonzalez. (2019). Economic Characteristics, Agrochemical use and Health Risk Among Grenadian Farmers. Research & Reviews: Journal of Agriculture and Allied Sciences, 8(3), 2.
- Glasgow L, Worme A, Keku E, Forde M. Knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding rabies in Grenada. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2019 Jan 29;13(1):e0007079. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0007079
- Glasgow, L., Langaigne, B., Thomas, C., Harvey, O. and Campbell, E.A. (2019) Knowledge and Perspectives of Residents in Grenada Regarding Climate Change and the Impacts on the Coastal Environment. American Journal of Climate Change, 8, 284-301. https://doi.org/10.4236/ajcc.2019.82016
- Trends in morbidity and mortality of community-acquired pneumonia in Grenada during 2015-2019. Charles, Shawn, MD MPH; Glasgow, Lindonne, MSPH DRPH; Maruthana, Joel, MD; Ramdass, Prakash, MD MPH. International Public Health Journal, suppl. Special Issue: Public health themes in Grenada and the Caribbean Region II; Hauppauge Vol. 12, Iss. 4, (2020): 421-426.
- Glasgow L, Lewis R, Charles S. The cancer epidemic in the Caribbean region: Further opportunities to reverse the disease trend. Lancet Reg Heal - Am. 2022 Sep 1;13:100295.
- Workplace safety and occupational health hazards at the General Hospital in Grenada, West Indies. Edwards, Nesta; La, Anthony; Keku, Emmanuel; Telesford, Lindonne. International Public Health Journal, suppl. Special Issue: The public health implications of health behaviors and diseases; Vol. 15, Iss. 1, (2023): 119-129.
- Francis K, Edwards O, Telesford L (2023) Climate and dengue transmission in Grenada for the period 2010–2020: Should we be concerned? PLOS Clim 2(6): e0000122. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pclm.0000122
- Telesford L, Nsobundu C, Lewis T, Marks A, Alamrany A, Zaim O, Lachica I, Eruaga A, Roman LC, Slavkovska T, Mandal D and Chandran V (2024) Leveraging small island context to advance and disseminate environmental health and sustainable development knowledge through higher education. Front. Educ. 9:1337302. doi:10.3389/feduc.2024.1337302
- Telesford L, Joseph S-A, Charles S, Nixon S, Gabriel O, Noel C, Theodore K, Walcott-Pierre T and Macpherson C (2025) The Caribbean cancer portal: lessons for sustainability, accessibility, and impact in cancer programs in Caribbean Islands. Front. Cancer Control Soc. 3:1577014. doi: 10.3389/fcacs.2025.1577014
Selected Projects
- Grenada Wastewater Treatment and Recycling Project
- Farmers Livelihood Enhancement Research
- Global Sexual, Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child, & Adolescent Health (SRMNCAH) and Gender-based Violence
- Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment (community level)
- Methodology for Population Climate Change Vulnerability Profiling
- Metastatic Breast Cancer Study
- Impact of Overseas Travel on Cancer Care in the Small Island Developing States of the Eastern Caribbean (CASIDEC)
- Assessment of farmers' health risk from pesticide use
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