Duke Global Health Institute

Duke Global Health Institute
Name	Duke Global Health Institute
Established	2006
Type	Private research institute
Parent	Duke University
Location	Durham, North Carolina, United States

Contents

Duke Global Health Institute is an academic institute within Duke University focused on interdisciplinary global health research, education, and policy engagement. Founded to integrate clinical, public health, social science, and biomedical approaches, it connects scholars across Duke University School of Medicine, Trinity College of Arts and Sciences, Pratt School of Engineering, and affiliated hospitals such as Duke University Hospital and Durham VA Medical Center. The institute collaborates with international partners including World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and universities across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

History

The institute was established amid broader trends following global responses to HIV/AIDS epidemic, SARS outbreak, and the expansion of global health programs at institutions like Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Early initiatives linked Duke investigators involved in vaccine trials and infectious disease programs with faculty from Duke University School of Law and Fuqua School of Business. Over time, leadership changes included directors with backgrounds in epidemiology, health policy, and infectious disease research, and the institute expanded its portfolio during global events such as the Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The institute's mission emphasizes interdisciplinary scholarship bridging clinical medicine, public health practice, and policy analysis to address health disparities in settings like sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and Central America. Programs integrate methods from epidemiology, biostatistics, implementation science, and health systems research, partnering with agencies such as USAID, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Signature initiatives include collaborations on maternal and child health, malaria control, non-communicable diseases, and health equity projects with NGOs like Partners In Health and Clinton Health Access Initiative.

Faculty appointments span units including Duke University School of Medicine, Nicholas School of the Environment, Sanford School of Public Policy, and Duke-NUS Medical School collaborations. Core faculty have expertise in epidemiology, infectious diseases, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, nutrition, and mental health, with joint appointments in centers such as Duke Clinical Research Institute and Duke Global Health Innovation Center. Visiting scholars have included researchers from Makerere University, University of Cape Town, University of Nairobi, and Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.

Research projects address priorities like HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, maternal mortality, and childhood malnutrition, leveraging funding from National Institutes of Health, Gates Foundation, and Wellcome Trust. Initiatives include clinical trials in partnership with Duke University Medical Center and implementation studies with Médecins Sans Frontières and Save the Children. The institute has contributed to modeling work used by groups such as Imperial College London and Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation during pandemics, and supports data science collaborations with Google Health and IBM Watson Health-related projects.

The institute offers undergraduate majors, graduate certificates, and professional master's tracks connected to Duke University School of Medicine and Fuqua School of Business. Training programs include global health internships, summer research fellowships, and joint degree pathways like MD/MPH and PhD collaborations with Emory University and University of Oxford. Students engage in practicum projects with partners such as World Bank, UNICEF, and Pan American Health Organization, and alumni have pursued careers at institutions including CDC, WHO, and academic posts at University of California, San Francisco and Columbia University.

Fieldwork is conducted through long-term partnerships with hospitals and ministries of health in countries such as Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, India, and Peru. The institute supports capacity building with institutions like Kenya Medical Research Institute, Rwanda Biomedical Center, and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases-affiliated sites. Collaborative projects have included vaccine delivery programs with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and health systems strengthening supported by Global Affairs Canada and DFID.

Funding sources combine university support from Duke University, competitive grants from National Institutes of Health, philanthropic gifts from individuals like donors to the Duke Endowment, and awards from foundations such as Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Carnegie Corporation of New York. Governance involves a director reporting to university leadership and advisory boards comprising faculty, external stakeholders from organizations like WHO, CDC Foundation, and international partner institutions including University of Cape Town and Makerere University. Accountability mechanisms align with institutional review boards at Duke University Health System and international ethics committees.