Scott Santibanez
Adjunct Associate Professor
Adjunct or Visiting, Global Health
PLEASE NOTE: DUE TO SCHEDULING CONFLICTS, DR. SANTIBANEZ HAS DECIDED TO DISCONTINUE THIS ADJUNCT FACULTY POSITION AS OF APRIL 30, 2019. AFTER THIS DATE, HE WILL NO LONGER BE AVAILABLE FOR FACULTY PROJECTS AT EMORY UNIVERSITY.
Scott Santibañez is an infectious disease physician who is board-certified in Internal Medicine, Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine.
Scott is known for his lifelong commitment to social justice. He has worked extensively in the field of HIV/AIDS in drug users, as well as with health disparities and vulnerable populations. As a volunteer physician with St. Joseph’s Mercy Care Services and the Good Samaritan Health Center of Atlanta, he has provided primary care for Latino and Vietnamese immigrant communities and homeless and other marginalized persons, at various clinics and mobile sites around Atlanta for nearly 20 years. Prior to moving to Atlanta, he worked with homeless populations in New York, Pittsburgh and New Orleans. Born and raised in Appalachia, Scott also has a strong interest in health issues affecting rural communities.
His interests include working with community and faith-based organizations to translate public health science into community action. He has extensive experience working with many diverse Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and secular non-profit organizations. He has served and published with Emory colleagues during responses to Ebola, 2009 H1N1, Zika and Hurricane Katrina. Scott is a Captain in the US Public Health Service. As a Commissioned Corps officer, he served as Commanding Officer of Camp Phoenix during the 2005 Hurricane Katrina Response, and was technical Chief of Staff during the 2009 H1N1 Response. From 2007-2008 he was lead for the White House Homeland Security Council Community/Faith-Based Organization Work Group; he has presented at the White House under both the Bush (2006) and Obama (2010) Administrations. He also holds a doctorate from Trinity, a seminary in western Pennsylvania, and teaches research methods at two seminaries.
Scott previously served as faculty advisor for Emory's Graduate Christian Fellowship, where he focused on helping Emory students to develop a lifelong practice of serving in their communities and working for social justice. In this role, he nominated a Rollins MPH student who won the 2014 Emory Humanitarian Award.
He served as an Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer beginning in 1999 and serves on the EIS Advisory Committee, is a Section Editor for Annals of Emergency Medicine, and is currently the Associate Director for Science for CDC’s Division in Preparedness and Emerging Infections.
Areas of Interest
- Addiction/Substance Abuse
- Bioterrorism
- Community Health & Development
- Emergency Preparedness
- Faith Based Health
- Health Disparities
- Health Literacy
- HIV/AIDS Prevention
- Public Health Preparedness and Response
- Rural Health
Education
- DMin 2015, Trinity
- MD 1994, West Virginia
- MPH & Tropical Medicine 1999, Tulane
- MA, Theological Studies 2011, Columbia
Affiliations & Activities
Publications
- , 2019, Addressing Disease-related Stigma during Infectious Disease Outbreaks. (In Press.), , ,
- , 2019, Engaging Communities to reach Immigrant and Minority Populations: the First Decade of the Minnesota Immunization Networking Initiative (MINI). (In Press.), , ,
- , 2019, Strengthening Rural States’ Capacity to Prepare for and Respond to Emerging Infectious Diseases, 2013-2015., , ,
- , 2018, Infectious Diseases Physicians' Perspectives Regarding Injection Drug Use and Related Infections, United States, 2017. , , ,
- , 2018, Recognition of Azole-Resistant Aspergillosis by Physicians Specializing in Infectious Diseases, United States., , ,
- , 2018, Survey of diagnostic testing for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in adults: infectious disease physician practices and implications for burden estimates., , ,
- , 2017, Engaging Community and Faith-Based Organizations in the Zika Response, United States, , ,
- , 2017, Enhancing Laboratory Response Network Capacity in South Korea , , ,
- , 2017, How Is CDC Funded to Respond to Public Health Emergencies? Federal Appropriations and Budget Execution Process for Non–Financial Experts, , ,
- , 2016, Communication Between Infectious Disease Physicians and US State and Local Public Health Agencies: Strengths, Challenges, and Opportunities, , ,
- , 2016, Identifying and Addressing the Daily Needs of Contacts of an Ebola Patient During Investigation, Monitoring, and Movement Restriction, Ohio, , ,
- , 2016, Infectious Disease Physicians' Perceptions About Ebola Preparedness Early in the US Response: A Qualitative Analysis and Lessons for the Future., , ,
- , 2016, Modeling and Public Health Decision-Making, , ,
- , 2016, Modeling in Real Time During the Ebola Response, , ,
- , 2015, Addressing Needs of Contacts of Ebola Patients During an Investigation of an Ebola Cluster in the United States — Dallas, Texas, 2014, , ,
- , 2015, CDC’s Early Response to a Novel Viral Disease, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV), September 2012–May 2014. , , ,
- , 2015, Health Communications and Community Mobilization During an Ebola Response: Partnerships with CFBOs, , ,
- , 2015, Infectious Disease Physician Assessment of Hospital Preparedness for Ebola Virus Disease, , ,
- , 2015, The Tzu Chi Silent Mentor Program: Application of Buddhist Ethics to Teach Student Physicians Empathy, Compassion, and Self-Sacrifice, , ,
- , 2014, Estimating the Future Number of Cases in the Ebola Epidemic — Liberia and Sierra Leone, 2014–2015, , ,
- , 2014, Pandemic Preparedness and Response and Faith Communities. Invited book chapter in edited volume, Religion as a Social Determinant of Public Health. , , ,
- , 2014, The Infectious Diseases Society of America Emerging Infections Network: bridging the gap between Clinical Infectious Diseases and Public Health. , , ,
- , 2012, Socio-demographic Differences in Opinions about pandemic H1N1 and Seasonal Influenza Vaccination and Disease among Adults during the 2009–2010 Influenza season., , ,
- , 2011, A Ten Step Approach for Health Communications with Community and Faith-Based Organizations during Public Health Emergencies., , ,
- , 2010, A Case Study in Collaborating with Atlanta-Based African-American Churches: A Promising Means for Reaching Inner-City Substance Users with Rapid HIV Testing., , ,
- , 2009, A primer on strategies for prevention and control of seasonal and pandemic influenza. , , ,
- , 2009, Associations of prayer, mind-body therapy, and smoking cessation in a national survey. , , ,
- , 2009, Disparities in tuberculosis between Asian/Pacific Islanders and non-Hispanic Whites, United States, 1993-2006. , , ,
- , 2009, Ethical and regulatory considerations in HIV prevention studies employing respondent-driven sampling., , ,
- , 2008, Ischemic cardiac events during the Department of Health and Human Services Smallpox Vaccination Program, 2003., , ,
- , 2008, Myocarditis, pericarditis, and dilated cardiomyopathy after smallpox vaccination among civilians in the United States, January-October 2003., , ,
- , 2008, Predictors of sharing injection equipment by HIV-seropositive injection drug users. , , ,
- , 2007, . Longitudinal Correlates of Health Care-Seeking Behaviors among HIV-Seropositve Injecting Drug Users: How Can We Intervene to Improve Health Care Utilization? , , ,
- , 2007, Faith-Based Organizations and Pandemic Preparedness, , ,
- , 2007, Faith-Based Organizations and Pandemic Preparedness, Journal of Islamic Medical Association , , ,
- , 2007, Participants’ Descriptions of Social Support within a Multi-Site Intervention for HIV-Seropositive Injection Drug Users (INSPIRE)., , ,
- , 2007, Results from a randomized controlled trial of a peer-mentoring intervention to reduce HIV transmission and increase access to care and adherence to HIV medications among HIV-seropositive injection drug users. , , ,
- , 2006, Providers' HIV prevention discussions with HIV-seropositive injection drug users. , , ,
- , 2006, the HIV/AIDS Epidemic among Drug Users in the United States, 2004: Epidemiology, Individual and Contextual Risk-factors, and Approaches to Prevention. , , ,
- , 2005, Adverse events associated with smallpox vaccination in the United States, January-October 2003., , ,
- , 2005, CDC international HIV prevention research activities among injection drug users in Thailand and Russia., , ,
- , 2005, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HIV in correctional populations: a review of epidemiology and prevention. , , ,
- , 2005, Outreach through federal AIDS Centers is needed to prevent the spread of HIV in Russia. , , ,
- , 2005, Prevalence and correlates of crack cocaine injection among young injection drug users in the United States—CIDUS II, 1997-1999. , , ,
- , 2004, Interventions for Seropositive Injectors-Research and Evaluation: An Integrated Behavioral Intervention With HIV-Positive Injection Drug Users to Address Medical Care, Adherence, and Risk Reduction., , ,
- , 2004, Superinfection following smallpox vaccination (Vaccinia), United States: surveillance January 2003 through January 2004., , ,
- , 2002, Book Chapter - Giardiasis, Rudolph's Textbook of Pediatrics, 2nd edition, , ,
- , 2002, Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Infant Mortality Rates --- 60 Largest U.S. Cities, 1995—1998. , , ,
- , 2001, Protracted Outbreaks of Cryptosporidiosis Associated With Swimming Pool Use --- Ohio and Nebraska, 2000. , , ,
- , 1999, Chronic Headaches in a Woman From Honduras: Controversies in treatment of Neurocysticercosis. , , ,
- , 1998, An AIDS patient with Dementia and Seizures: Case Presentation and review of Naegleria fowleri and Acanthamoeba species., , ,