Rita Giacaman is a professor and research & program coordinator at the Institute of Community and Public Health at the Birzeit University where she has been working over the last three decades. She is a founding member of the institute.  Prior to this, she was a researcher at the Palestinian social action movement and helped develop and set up the Palestinian primary health care model. She also took part in the establishment of the Palestinian community based disability rehabilitation network. She holds a Ph.D. in clinical pharmacy from the San Francisco Medical Centre, University of California, USA and a masters in Sociology with a focus on health policy and women’s health. Dr Giacaman’s research interests focus on issues related to the effect of chronic-war and violence on health and has carried out research on topics including the psycho-social/ mental health system building in war like conditions; social epidemiology; health policy; public health; and women’s health. She has published in peer reviewed journals including the Lancet, Health Policy, the European Journal of Public Health and the Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics.