DiaLink Palestine: R&D of a digital health lab and low-bandwidth mHealth tools

The doctoral researcher will be hosted at KU Leuven’s Group T Leuven Campus in the Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research unit. The unit develops user-centred interactive systems and investigates how people interact with information through methods including user experience design, visualisation, multimedia, language technologies and machine learning. The researcher will work closely with the eMedia Research Lab and the Leuven Centre for Affordable Health Technology (LCAHT), creating an interdisciplinary setting that connects HCI, digital media, biomedical engineering, artificial intelligence and global health. Anchored at PPU's College of Medicine and Health Sciences and the human-computer interaction research unit, the project will establish a Digital Health Living Lab and co-create an inclusive, low-bandwidth mHealth tool, an explainable clinical decision support system, and blended patient/clinician/community health-worker pathways. The work combines human-computer interaction, digital health, implementation research, clinical data and equity-centred evaluation. The candidate will be embedded at PPU-CMHS and jointly supervised by PPU and KU Leuven professors. The trajectory includes approved research periods in Belgium and locally in Palestine. Remote/hybrid alternatives may be used when mobility is infeasible because of visa, security or travel conditions, subject to the applicable scholarship and institutional rules. Project DiaLink Palestine addresses disrupted continuity of Type 2 Diabetes care in conflict-affected Palestinian settings. Anchored at PPU's College of Medicine and Health Sciences, the project will establish a Digital Health Living Lab and co-create an inclusive, low-bandwidth mHealth tool, an explainable clinical decision support system, and blended patient/clinician/community health-worker pathways. The work combines human-computer interaction, digital health, implementation research, clinical data and equity-centred evaluation. Profile The successful candidate will help connect the Digital Health Living Lab, pilot sites and the joint PPU–KU Leuven research programme. The PhD has a clear engineering focus: developing and evaluating human-centred interactive systems for conflict-resilient diabetes care. The exact doctoral proposal will be refined with the supervisors and doctoral school within the approved DiaLink outcomes.
• Study how conflict, connectivity constraints, health literacy, gender, disability, geography and care workflows shape equitable digital diabetes care.
• Design, implement and evaluate human-centred, offline-first interactive systems that integrate optimization algorithms, machine learning, explainable AI and interactive visual interfaces, enabling patients and healthcare professionals to understand, steer and collaborate with AI-supported decision tools.
• Support baseline, implementation and mixed-methods evaluation; manage reproducible, secure research workflows.
• Assess usability, trust, adoption, continuity-of-care and equity outcomes, including subgroup differences and unintended burdens.
• Contribute to ethics, privacy-by-design, data governance, algorithm safety, open/reusable project outputs, publications and uptake materials.
• Contribute to PPU capacity strengthening, teaching, supervision, stakeholder learning and the National Diabetes Digital Toolkit. Eligibility
• A master's degree, completed by the appointment/admission deadline, in engineering, engineering technology, computer science, computer engineering, artificial intelligence, data science, human-computer interaction, biomedical engineering, information systems or a closely related technical discipline that clearly demonstrates engineering capability.
• Academic results that satisfy KU Leuven's doctoral admission

requirements:
normally a relevant master's degree obtained with at least distinction, or an internationally equivalent result, unless the candidate has otherwise distinguished themselves through high-quality scientific publications or design-oriented achievements.
• Demonstrated strong Python programming and practical experience with Git/version control, databases, mobile prototyping and relevant AI/XAI libraries (for example, scikit-learn, PyTorch or TensorFlow, and SHAP or LIME, or equivalents), supported by a thesis, code repository, software prototype or comparable technical work.
• Strong research potential and ability to work across clinical, technical and community settings.
• Strong spoken and written English. Arabic proficiency is required for direct field engagement or must be covered through an approved fieldwork arrangement.
• Ability and willingness to undertake the planned Belgium research periods, while recognising that travel remains subject to visa and security feasibility. We particularly value
• Experience in applied AI/HCI or distributed systems and architectures, including one or more of the following: optimisation, machine learning/XAI, interactive visualisation, offline-first or mobile systems, secure data synchronisation and software engineering.
• Experience with user-centred or participatory design, usability/accessibility, mixed-methods research, digital health, or work with patients, clinicians, community organisations or health services.
• Evidence of careful research practice: ethics, privacy, secure data handling, reproducibility and clear communication.
• Commitment to Leave No One Behind, gender/equity analysis, accessibility and culturally safe engagement. Selection process Selection will be conducted by a joint committee including the PPU promoter or relevant academic representative and the KU Leuven promoters. Conflicts of interest will be declared and documented. Shortlisted candidates may be asked to complete a standardised technical task and discuss their individual contribution to previous programming, software, optimisation, AI or interactive-systems work. Application package
• Curriculum vitae, including education, research/employment experience, programming languages, technical tools, methods and publications or outputs, if any.
• Motivation letter (maximum two pages) explaining your fit with the focused DiaLink PhD topic and your commitment to equitable diabetes care.
• A short concept note (maximum two pages) on the stated PhD research question, outlining a feasible technical approach to modelling and clinician-facing explanation design, an evaluation plan and the main ethical/equity risk.
• Master's degree certificate and transcript; include a brief explanation where the grading system needs context.
• Master's thesis or one representative research/technical output, or a concise summary and link where the complete output cannot be submitted.
• Evidence of programming and engineering capability, preferably a link to a code repository, software prototype or technical portfolio. If code cannot be shared, provide a maximum one-page description of the system, methods, tools and your individual contribution.
• Names and contact details of two referees. References will normally be requested only for finalists. Offer The approved funding covers a 48-month sandwich trajectory: 18 research months in Belgium at €1,900 per month and 30 research months in Palestine at €200 per month, plus approved travel and supervision/research provisions. The Belgium component is planned as three six-month stays across the project. Timing remains subject to admission, registration, visa and security feasibility, and applicable VLIR-UOS and institutional rules; approved remote or hybrid arrangements may be used if mobility becomes infeasible. https://set.kuleuven.be/caht Interested? For more information please contact Dr. Melkamu Hunegnaw Asmare, mail: melkamuhunegnaw.asmare@kuleuven.be or Prof. dr. ir. Jean-Marie Aerts, mail: jean-marie.aerts@kuleuven.be or Prof. Salamah Alwahsh, mail: salamah_alwahsh@ppu.edu You can apply for this job no later than October 30, 2026 via the online application tool KU Leuven strives for an inclusive, respectful and socially safe environment. We embrace diversity among individuals and groups as an asset. Open dialogue and differences in perspective are essential for an ambitious research and educational environment. In our commitment to equal opportunity, we recognize the consequences of historical inequalities. We do not accept any form of discrimination based on, but not limited to, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, age, ethnic or national background, skin colour, religious and philosophical diversity, neurodivergence, employment disability, health, or socioeconomic status. For questions about accessibility or support offered, we are happy to assist you at this email address.
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