Dr. Gabriel Alcoba

Gabriel Alcoba is a medical doctor (MD, PhD), strongly focused and committed to people living with NTDs. Initially specialised in paediatrics (Swiss FMH), he obtained degrees in tropical infectious diseases, parasitology, public and global health (DTMH/UK; MPH/LSHTM; PhD/UNIGE, Geneva), he is currently working at Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) since 2013, as Tropical medicine advisor, and then lead of MSF’s NTD platform.

Swiss, born and educated in Geneva (Swiss with Spanish-Australian parents), he has worked in Swiss hospitals since 2000, mainly HUG, and in NGOs (mainly MSF), in African (11) and Asian (5) countries, and he’s now sharing his time between MSF and Geneva University Hospitals (SMTH/HUG), as clinical supervisor with some time for lecturing & research. He obtained two doctorates (MD, PhD), the first focused on antibiotic stewardship in malnourished children, the latter (PhD) focused on an NTD: Epidemiology of Snakebite in Nepal and Cameroon (One Health approach).

Within MSF, he directly supports field colleagues on diagnostics and therapeutics, clinically and strategically, and MSF research on NTDs (snakebite, leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis, dengue, and noma), in complex settings such as South Sudan, Sudan, Chad, Kenya, and Madagascar. Recent challenges include a strong focus on NTD diagnostics (leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis, dengue), and NTD drugs & antivenoms.
Gabriel was involved in initiatives to promote NTDs: 2017 WHO resolution (Snakebite); WHO Roadmap (2019); scientific meetings with MSF/DNDi, HUG, WT, and WHO expert groups. He had co-lead research on NTDs, tropical infectious diseases, and paediatrics.

He was awarded distinctions for his PhD at UNIGE (“mention très bien” 6/6) and for his DMT&H by the Royal College of Physicians/UK (“Top ten percent” /parasitology & GH).