Rebecca Garabed

Rebecca B. Garabed, VMD, MPVM, PhD, is a Professor of Epidemiology in the College of Veterinary Medicine at The Ohio State University, where her research centers on the quantitative modeling of infectious diseases in complex, real‑world ecosystems. Her work integrates Bayesian statistics, mechanistic modeling, and ecological data to understand how pathogens persist and spread across heterogeneous host populations. Garabed’s research spans a diverse array of disease systems, with substantial contributions to the study of foot‑and‑mouth disease (FMD) and its transmission dynamics in pastoralist networks, including spatial, agent‑based, and multi‑level models developed through interdisciplinary work in Cameroon. She has also advanced understanding of Neospora caninum, old and new-world screwworm, and Dracunculus medinensis epidemiology through multi‑host modeling studies in domestic animal and wildlife communities, investigating species‑specific immunity, transmission routes, and ecological interfaces that influence parasite persistence. Across her research portfolio, Garabed emphasizes the role of population heterogeneity, environmental interfaces, and human–animal interactions in sustaining pathogen transmission. Her modeling frameworks aim to improve disease surveillance, guide targeted control strategies, and deepen scientific understanding of how infectious agents circulate within interconnected biological and social systems.