Dr Islam is a senior lecturer at the Department of Public Health at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. He coordinates and teaches Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Systematic Review and Evaluation of Healthcare Research. Dr Islam has a keen interest in social determinants and public health and he conducts research around healthcare and public health programs for vulnerable groups, such as displaced people and children. He has conducted some extensive research on substance use and addictive medicines. Before entering academia, Dr. Islam worked in the health policy interface for about five years. He is a member of the editorial board of the peer-reviewed journal "Drug and Alcohol Review". He published more than 100 peer-reviewed papers in scholarly journals.