
Overview
Background
Dr. Behzad Kiani is a dedicated researcher specialising in spatial epidemiology of infectious diseases and human health, with a keen interest in advancing methodologies and applications within the field. Dr Kiani is currently a Research Fellow within UQ's ODeSI team. Previously, he was a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Montreal, Canada and before that an Assistant Professor at Mashhad University of Medical Science in Iran.
Dr. Kiani's research expertise is geoinformatics using spatial regression models and spatial cluster analysis. He has a PhD in medical informatics and a Master's degree in computer science. His work has informed global public policy and making, including urban planning and health, health resource allocation and identifying high-risk areas for different diseases at specific locations over time to implement more efficient and effective health interventions. He is a member of the executive of the International Society of Geospatial Health and is an associate editor of the Geospatial Health Journal. Dr Kiani has over 70 scientific publications in high-impact journals, including seminal work related to identify high-risk spatiotemporal patterns of cutaneous leishmaniasis in Iran and gentrification, neighborhood socioeconomic factors and urban vegetation inequities in Canada". He is an accomplished and passionate teacher, as well as supervisor and dedicated to nurturing the next generation of spatial epidemiologists and instilling in them a deep understanding of the field's principles and applications to improve global health.
Availability
- Dr Behzad Kiani is:
- Available for supervision
- Media expert
Research interests
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Comparing spatial epidemiology models to investigate health outcomes
Comparative analysis of spatial epidemiology models. Evaluation of efficacy and predictive accuracy of spatial epidemiology models. Spatial regression modeling and geoinformatics. Understanding disease patterns, risk factors, and health disparities.
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Effect of environmental and socioeconomic factors on human health
Investigation of how climate patterns, built environments, and socioeconomic conditions influence population health outcomes.
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Gentrification and human health
Exploration of gentrification's impact on human health through spatial epidemiology. Investigation of socio-economic shifts, housing policies, and public health outcomes. Contribution to evidence-based policies for equitable health outcomes amidst urban development.
Research impacts
I conducted extensive research in Iran aimed at identifying high-risk areas for both communicable and non-communicable diseases. This research played a pivotal role in assisting policymakers in the efficient allocation of health resources across various geographical regions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, my research significantly contributed to the formulation of informed quarantine policies and the prioritization of COVID-19 vaccination efforts.
My research in Canada through meticulous analyses of cycling infrastructure expansions, urban vegetation increases, and the temporal dynamics of gentrification sheds light on crucial aspects of urban planning and social equity. By uncovering disparities in the distribution of cycling infrastructure and urban vegetation, particularly in areas characterized by material deprivation, visible minorities, and gentrification, the findings underscore the importance of prioritizing equitable access to resources and amenities across diverse communities. Importantly, the research highlights the need for informed, equity-based urban planning policies that consider the complex interplay of sociodemographic dynamics and infrastructure investments. By integrating these insights into decision-making processes and engaging a diverse range of stakeholders, cities can strive towards creating more inclusive, sustainable, and healthy urban environments for all residents.
Works
Search Professor Behzad Kiani’s works on UQ eSpace
2025
Journal Article
Spatial multilevel analysis of individual, household, and community factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in the Dominican Republic
Kiani, Behzad, Sartorius, Benn, Martin, Beatris Mario, Cadavid Restrepo, Angela, Mayfield, Helen J., Paulino, Cecilia Then, Jarolim, Petr, De St Aubin, Micheal, Ramm, Ronald Skews, Dumas, Devan, Garnier, Salome, Etienne, Marie Caroline, Peña, Farah, Abdalla, Gabriela, Kucharski, Adam, Duke, William, Baldwin, Margaret, Henríquez, Bernarda, de la Cruz, Lucia, Nilles, Eric J. and Lau, Colleen L. (2025). Spatial multilevel analysis of individual, household, and community factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in the Dominican Republic. Scientific Reports, 15 (1) 11203. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-94653-3
2025
Other Outputs
Effectiveness and impact of rotavirus vaccination, real-world study: a systematic review
Yu, Fan, Cao, Jin, Furuya Kanamori, Luis, Kiani, Behzad, Lau, Colleen and Sartorius, Benn (2025). Effectiveness and impact of rotavirus vaccination, real-world study: a systematic review. Middletown, DE United States: INPLASY - International Platform of Registered Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Protocols. doi: 10.37766/inplasy2025.3.0055
2025
Journal Article
Nationwide spatial epidemiological dataset of over 100,000 influenza-like illness notifications in Iran by county (2015-2019)
Sedghian, Atieh, Mohammadebrahimi, Shahab, Sartorius, Benn and Kiani, Behzad (2025). Nationwide spatial epidemiological dataset of over 100,000 influenza-like illness notifications in Iran by county (2015-2019). Bmc Research Notes, 18 (1) 72. doi: 10.1186/s13104-025-07139-w
2025
Journal Article
A study protocol for developing a spatial vulnerability index for infectious diseases of poverty in the Caribbean region
Kiani, Behzad, Mario Martin, Beatris, Cadavid Restrepo, Angela, Mayfield, Helen J., Skinner, Eloise, Karina Maldonado Alcaíno, Ana, Nilles, Eric J., Lau, Colleen L. and Sartorius, Benn (2025). A study protocol for developing a spatial vulnerability index for infectious diseases of poverty in the Caribbean region. Global Health Action, 18 (1) 2461867, 2461867-1. doi: 10.1080/16549716.2025.2461867
2025
Journal Article
Spatiotemporal clusters of acute respiratory infections associated with socioeconomic, meteorological, and air pollution factors in South Punjab, Pakistan
Fatima, Munazza, Butt, Ibtisam, MohammadEbrahimi, Shahab, Kiani, Behzad and Gruebner, Oliver (2025). Spatiotemporal clusters of acute respiratory infections associated with socioeconomic, meteorological, and air pollution factors in South Punjab, Pakistan. BMC Public Health, 25 (1) 469, 1. doi: 10.1186/s12889-025-21741-4
2025
Journal Article
Empowering access: unveiling an overall composite spatial accessibility index to healthcare services in Southeastern Iran
Raeesi, Ahmad, Hashtarkhani, Soheil, Tara, Mahmood, Sargolzaei, Narjes and Kiani, Behzad (2025). Empowering access: unveiling an overall composite spatial accessibility index to healthcare services in Southeastern Iran. International Journal for Equity in Health, 24 (1) 35, 35-1. doi: 10.1186/s12939-025-02399-1
2025
Journal Article
Cardiovascular health in perspective: a comprehensive five-year geodatabase of hospitalizations and environmental factors in Mashhad, Iran
Mohammadebrahimi, Shahab, Dehghan, Mohammad and Kiani, Behzad (2025). Cardiovascular health in perspective: a comprehensive five-year geodatabase of hospitalizations and environmental factors in Mashhad, Iran. Bmc Research Notes, 18 (1) 12. doi: 10.1186/s13104-025-07087-5
2025
Journal Article
Klebsiella pneumoniae species complex bloodstream infection in adult patients: changing epidemiology and determinants of poor outcomes
Stewart, Adam G., Harris, Patrick N. A., Edwards, Felicity, Kiani, Behzad, Paterson, David L. and Laupland, Kevin B. (2025). Klebsiella pneumoniae species complex bloodstream infection in adult patients: changing epidemiology and determinants of poor outcomes. Infection. doi: 10.1007/s15010-024-02457-w
2025
Journal Article
Fatal journeys: causes of death in international travellers in South America
Allel, Kasim, Cabada, Miguel M, Kiani, Behzad, Martin, Beatris Mario, Tanabe, Melinda, Restrepo, Angela Cadavid, De Souza Dos Santos, Gabriela, Lloveras, Susana, Shiferaw, Wondimeneh, Sartorius, Benn, Mills, Deborah J, Lau, Colleen L and Furuya-Kanamori, Luis (2025). Fatal journeys: causes of death in international travellers in South America. Journal of Travel Medicine, 32 (1) taae119, 1-11. doi: 10.1093/jtm/taae119
2024
Journal Article
STROBE-GEMA: a STROBE extension for reporting of geographically explicit ecological momentary assessment studies
Kingsbury, Célia, Buzzi, Marie, Chaix, Basile, Kanning, Martina, Khezri, Sadun, Kiani, Behzad, Kirchner, Thomas R., Maurel, Allison, Thierry, Benoît and Kestens, Yan (2024). STROBE-GEMA: a STROBE extension for reporting of geographically explicit ecological momentary assessment studies. Archives of Public Health, 82 (1) 84. doi: 10.1186/s13690-024-01310-8
2024
Journal Article
Geospatial modelling of ambient air pollutants and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases at regional scale in Pakistan
Fatima, Munazza, Ahmad, Adeel, Butt, Ibtisam, Arshad, Sana and Kiani, Behzad (2024). Geospatial modelling of ambient air pollutants and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases at regional scale in Pakistan. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 196 (10) 929, 1-26. doi: 10.1007/s10661-024-13105-z
2024
Journal Article
Investigating the role of the built environment, socio-economic status, and lifestyle factors in the prevalence of chronic diseases in Mashhad: PLS-SEM model
Irankhah, Kiyavash, Asadimehr, Soheil, Kiani, Behzad, Jamali, Jamshid, Rezvani, Reza and Sobhani, Seyyed Reza (2024). Investigating the role of the built environment, socio-economic status, and lifestyle factors in the prevalence of chronic diseases in Mashhad: PLS-SEM model. Frontiers in Public Health, 12 1358423, 1-13. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1358423
2024
Journal Article
The relationship between sidewalk access and weight-related outcomes: a systematic review
Irankhah, Kiyavash, Asadimehr, Soheil, Ranjbar, Golnaz, Kiani, Behzad and Sobhani, Seyyed Reza (2024). The relationship between sidewalk access and weight-related outcomes: a systematic review. Nutrition and Food Science, 54 (4), 732-750. doi: 10.1108/NFS-09-2023-0214
2024
Journal Article
A gender-specific geodatabase of five cancer types with the highest frequency of occurrence in Iran
Faramarzi, Sharareh, Kiani, Behzad, Hoseinkhani, Mohammedreza and Firouraghi, Neda (2024). A gender-specific geodatabase of five cancer types with the highest frequency of occurrence in Iran. BMC Research Notes, 17 (1) 83, 1-5. doi: 10.1186/s13104-024-06737-4
2024
Journal Article
Associations between gentrification, census tract-level socioeconomic status, and cycling infrastructure expansions in Montreal, Canada
Kiani, Behzad, Thierry, Benoit, Apparicio, Philippe, Firth, Caislin, Fuller, Daniel, Winters, Meghan and Kestens, Yan (2024). Associations between gentrification, census tract-level socioeconomic status, and cycling infrastructure expansions in Montreal, Canada. SSM - Population Health, 25 101637, 1-9. doi: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2024.101637
2024
Journal Article
Mastering geographically weighted regression: key considerations for building a robust model
Kiani, Behzad, Sartorius, Benn, Lau, Colleen L. and Bergquist, Robert (2024). Mastering geographically weighted regression: key considerations for building a robust model. Geospatial Health, 19 (1) 1271. doi: 10.4081/gh.2024.1271
2024
Journal Article
Cancer patterns in Iran: a gender-specific spatial modelling of cancer incidence during 2014–2017
Faramarzi, Sharareh, Kiani, Behzad, Faramarzi, Shahla and Firouraghi, Neda (2024). Cancer patterns in Iran: a gender-specific spatial modelling of cancer incidence during 2014–2017. BMC Cancer, 24 (1) 191, 1-14. doi: 10.1186/s12885-024-11940-4
2024
Journal Article
Space-time analysis of tuberculosis (2016–2020) in South Punjab, Pakistan
Fatima, Munazza, Butt, Ibtisam, Firouraghi, Neda, Khalil, Maria and Kiani, Behzad (2024). Space-time analysis of tuberculosis (2016–2020) in South Punjab, Pakistan. GeoJournal, 89 (1) 1. doi: 10.1007/s10708-024-11020-x
2024
Journal Article
Food waste in hospitals: implications and strategies for reduction: a systematic review
Mahmoudifar, Kamiar, Raeesi, Ahmad, Kiani, Behzad and Rezaie, Mitra (2024). Food waste in hospitals: implications and strategies for reduction: a systematic review. Management of Environmental Quality, ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print), 50-71. doi: 10.1108/MEQ-07-2023-0221
2023
Journal Article
Gentrification, neighborhood socioeconomic factors and urban vegetation inequities: A study of greenspace and tree canopy increases in Montreal, Canada
Kiani, Behzad, Thierry, Benoit, Fuller, Daniel, Firth, Caislin, Winters, Meghan and Kestens, Yan (2023). Gentrification, neighborhood socioeconomic factors and urban vegetation inequities: A study of greenspace and tree canopy increases in Montreal, Canada. Landscape and Urban Planning, 240 104871, 1-10. doi: 10.1016/j.landurbplan.2023.104871
Supervision
Availability
- Dr Behzad Kiani is:
- Available for supervision
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Supervision history
Current supervision
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Doctor Philosophy
Epidemiology and burden of rotavirus infections in Australia
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Colleen Lau, Associate Professor Luis Furuya Kanamori, Associate Professor Benn Sartorius
Media
Enquiries
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