Ruth Gibson

Dr. Ruth M. Gibson is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Health Policy at Stanford Medicine. She is also a postdoctoral fellow, by courtesy, at the Center for International Security and Cooperation at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and a postdoctoral affiliate at the Center for Innovation in Global Health.

Ruth’s academic focus is global health, foreign affairs, strategic studies, and population health. Her academic research seeks to improve maternal and child health in geopolitically complex countries–those dealing with war, other forms of geopolitical coercion such as sanctions, and diplomatic challenges. She is working with the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights Council to develop a universal system of monitoring to assess the impacts of sanctions on human rights. She has contributed to reports on the mental health impacts of war crimes for prosecutors at the International Criminal Court. She works with the Global Burden of Disease Consortium at the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, as part of their efforts to publish global health estimation and forecasting.

Regionally, the emphasis of Ruth’s work is on Asia (Taiwan–China) due to the potential threat of a great-power conflict to protect children in crisis and enforce adherence to international humanitarian law as the character of war evolves, and on Sub-Saharan Africa (the Sahel) due to high forecasted fertility rates and widespread food insecurity in this fragile region of the world struggling with internal conflict, terrorism, and the impact of climate change. Ruth is competent in English, Mandarin Chinese, and French.

Ruth’s goal is to advance maternal and child health in the most complex and challenging regions of the global through her academic work, public scholarship, speaking engagements, mentorship of those seeking to have humanitarian impact, teaching, and advisory roles with defense and diplomatic communities who seek to navigate the real-world complexities of advancing national strategic priorities while seeking to protect the most vulnerable in geopolitical tension and conflict––mothers and children.

Ruth’s appointment is supported by the Department of Health Policy and a Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship, the most prestigious postdoctoral award given by the Government of Canada to future global leaders in health. The fellowship is named after Frederick Banting, one of the Canadian physicians who invented insulin and sold the patent for one dollar for the betterment of humanity. Her postdoctoral supervisor is Prof. Paul H. Wise, with mentorship from Prof. Eran Bendavid, and Senior Associate Dean Michele Barry.

Ruth spent a decade living abroad doing humanitarian and global health work in eight countries on five continents, focusing on fragile nations struggling with poverty, human rights abuses, and armed conflict. She spent three years directing a humanitarian foundation in Madagascar following a military coup in which the democratically elected president was ousted. She witnessed famine and the collapse of the country’s healthcare system following international sanctions on foreign assistance. Ruth lived in the Middle East for two years, working for the Ministry of Health Affairs in Saudi Arabia. She has also worked with the ministries of health in Yemen and Somalia on issues such as health financing, medical education through telemedicine, and promoting diplomatic connections between conflict-affected countries and the international community through shared interests in improving human health. In her international work she witnessed the human impacts of war and nonviolent forms of geopolitical coercion, which informs her current academic research.

Ruth completed an Honor’s Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science at the University of Toronto, a fellowship in Medical Education at the Wilson Center for Medical Education at the University Health Network, and a PhD in Global Health and Strategic Studies at the University of British Columbia.