Sara Rotenberg

My DPhil Project:

One billion people-fifteen percent of the world’s population-experience disability in some form, yet health systems often neglect this population. Health worker training on disability is a recognized component of achieving high standards of health for people with disabilities, given that health worker’s lack of knowledge, stigma, and negative attitudes towards people with disabilities act as barriers to high quality health care. My project will explore existing disability training, demand for health services, and how health workers perceive training to improve future health worker training on disability. 

About Me:

I was born and raised in Canada, but have lived in Singapore, the United States, and India. In May 2020, I graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Georgetown University with a B.S. in Global Health. Here, I was awarded the Outstanding Student Award for the School of Nursing and Health Studies and named the school's first Rhodes Scholar. 

My research career began in high school when I worked in a spinal cord injury stem cell research lab. Since then, I have worked on a range of topics, including irrigation governance reform in India; demographic transition in sub-Saharan Africa; and developing equitable access policies for epidemic vaccines. Through the support of Georgetown's India Initiative, I have also spent considerable time in India researching the accessibility of the Mumbai Metro and developing a transportable, collapsible stool for persons with disabilities. 

In addition to research, I have worked in various health equity and international development-focused positions with the WHO, The World Bank, CEPI, Health Canada, the Embassy of Canada to the United States, and Canadian Paediatric Society.