Editor Profile

Nilma Nuruddin Hirani

University/Organization: Grant Government Medical College & Sir J J Hospital

Country: India

 Biography

Dr Nilma Hirani is a medical microbiologist, working at the Department of Microbiology, Grant Government Medical College and Sir J. J. Group of Hospitals, Mumbai since 2002. She is currently working as an Associate Professor and apart from the diagnostic work, she teaches undergraduate medical, dental and paramedical students as well as postgraduate students in Microbiology. She has gained a varied experience in various sections of the department like bacteriology, mycobacteriology, parasitology, serology etc. Over the years, she has developed expertise in the field of conventional and molecular TB diagnostics.

Dr Nilma has done her medical graduation (MBBS) from Goa University and post-graduation in Microbiology (MD) from Mumbai University. She is a member of some professional organisations like Indian Association of Medical Microbiologists, Indian Medical Association, International Society for Infectious Diseases and the Hospital Infection Society of India.

Dr Nilma stood first in her postgraduate exam and is a recipient of the prestigious Dr Gharpure award for scoring highest marks in the M.D.(Microbiology) exam. She has also received many awards for her research paper and poster presentations at various national and state conferences. She is a National Trainer for conventional and molecular TB diagnostics, certified by Central TB Division, India. She is also a Master Trainer for Tuberculosis Airborne Infection Control certified by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, USA. Dr. Nilma is a Certified Technical Assessor for ISO 15189:2012 for the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL), India. She has delivered many guest lectures at various platforms. She has a number of operational research projects to her credit in the field of TB.

Dr Nilma is now taking her special interest and expertise in the field of tuberculosis diagnostics further and is pursuing Ph.D. in Microbiology with her research on Rifampicin resistance with emphasis on detection of silent mutation in the rpoB genes using sequencing technology.