Rula Ghandour is an Academic Researcher at the Institute of Community and Public Health at Birzeit University, Palestine, since 2008. She holds a PhD in Public Health from the University of Oslo, a Master’s in Public Health (MPH) from Birzeit University, and a Bachelor's in Pharmacy from the Jordan University of Science and Technology. She has a wide research experience spanning diverse community and public health topics, including reproductive, maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent health (RMNCAH), non-communicable disease epidemiology, and disability.

Currently, her focus is on adolescents’ health, reproductive health, and epidemiology in low-resource and fragile settings. Dr. Ghandour also teaches postgraduate courses in health statistics, data analysis, and public health seminars. She is committed to mentoring students and early-career researchers in public health research. Her work integrates qualitative and quantitative approaches to address critical health challenges with evidence-based solutions. She actively contributes to the global scientific discourse through publications in peer-reviewed journals, peer reviews for academic publications, and presentations at international conferences and workshops.

Latest Publications

Selected Publications

Ghandour R, Hammoudeh W, Stigum H, Giacaman R, Fjeld H, Holmboe-Ottesen G. The hidden burden of dysmenorrhea among adolescent girls in Palestine refugee camps: a focus on well-being and academic performance. BMC Public Health. 2024;24(1):726.
Ghandour R, Hammoudeh W, Stigum H, Giacaman R, Fjeld H, Holmboe-Ottesen G. Menstrual characteristics and dysmenorrhea among Palestinian adolescent refugee camp dwellers in the West Bank and Jordan: a cross-sectional study. Archives of Public Health. 2023;81(1):47.
Hassan S, Ghandour R, Bakri L, Shwiki S, Safi S, Abuzaid R, et al. Menstrual health and hygiene among young Palestinian female university students in the West Bank: a cross-sectional study. BMJ Open. 2023;13(3):e069222.
Ghandour R, Massoud D, Ladadwa R, Hammoudeh W, Ottesen GH, Fjeld H, et al. Fieldwork opportunities and challenges in Palestinian refugee camps in the West Bank, occupied Palestinian territory, and in Jordan: lessons learned from a Palestinian adolescent reproductive health cross-sectional study. The Lancet. 2022;399:S27.
Ghandour R, Hammoudeh W, Giacaman R, Holmboe-Ottesen G, Fjeld HE. Coming of age: a qualitative study of adolescent girls’ menstrual preparedness in Palestinian refugee camps in the West Bank and Jordan. Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters. 2022;30(1).
Tietjen AK, Ghandour R, Mikki N, Jerdén L, Eriksson JW, Norberg M, et al. Quality of life of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients in Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate–Palestine: a part of the Palestinian diabetes complications and control study (PDCCS). Quality of Life Research. 2021;30(5):1407-16.
Ghandour R, Ghanayem R, Alkhanafsa F, Alsharif A, Asfour H, Hoshiya A, et al. Double Burden of COVID-19 Pandemic and Military Occupation: Mental Health Among a Palestinian University Community in the West Bank. Ann Glob Health. 2020;86(1):131-.
Shalash A, Alsalman HM, Hamed A, Abu Helo M, Ghandour R, Albarqouni L, et al. The range and nature of reproductive health research in the occupied Palestinian territory: a scoping review. Reproductive Health. 2019;16(1):41.
Leone T, Alburez-Gutierrez D, Ghandour R, Coast E, Giacaman R. Maternal and child access to care and intensity of conflict in the occupied Palestinian territory: a pseudo-longitudinal analysis (2000–2014). Conflict and Health. 2019;13(1):36.
Ghandour R, Mikki N, Abu Rmeileh NME, Jerdén L, Norberg M, Eriksson JW, et al. Complications of type 2 diabetes mellitus in Ramallah and al-Bireh: The Palestinian Diabetes Complications and Control Study (PDCCS). Primary Care Diabetes. 2018.
Abu-Rmeileh NME, Ghandour R, Tucktuck M, Obiedallah M. Research priority-setting: reproductive health in the occupied Palestinian territory. Reproductive Health. 2018;15(1):27.