Global Health Institute

On March 19, 2019, Dr. Mark Dybul spoke to Conversations in Global Health, a one credit pilot course where students have the opportunity to learn from and speak with experts in the field of global health. The conversation opened with Dr. Dybul discussing his academic background at Georgetown University where he studied theology, philosophy, and poetry. However, the trajectory of his professional life radically changed when he read an article that discussed the devastation of the AIDS epidemic on the African continent. He decided to pursue a career in medicine as a way to work towards combating the high death count and hopelessness that the disease induced. He then went on to be a leading voice at the intersection of health and development, serving as the executive director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and as the head of PEPFAR.

Dr. Mark Dybul is the co-director of the Center for Global Health and Quality at Georgetown Medical School and the prior executive director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. He acted as a guest speaker for our Conversations in Global Health seminar earlier this week, where he discussed his path to becoming a leader in global health. I found Dr. Dybul’s stories of growing into his career to be useful as points of reference as I prepare to explore potential careers after graduating from Georgetown.