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Christine L Gray

Assistant Research Professor of Global Health
Duke Global Health Institute

Overview


Dr. Christine (Chris) Gray is an assistant research professor in the Center for Health Policy and Inequalities Research (CHPIR) in the Duke Global Health Institute. She earned her PhD from the Department of Epidemiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) and her MPH from Emory University. She has been working with CHPIR since 2014, when she began analytic work on the longitudinal Positive Outcomes for Orphans cohort study as a doctoral student.

Prior to her doctoral studies, Chris worked for nearly a decade in public health, including completion of a three-year, post-masters fellowship at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and as a program manager and scientist with the Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. During her doctoral studies, Chris also worked with the Environmental Protection Agency for four years examining how simultaneous exposure to multiple environmental domains affects human health. Broadly, her research examines the role of social-environmental structures that drive disparities in mental health and well-being in vulnerable populations, particularly pediatric populations.

As an epidemiologist, Chris has great appreciation for study design, analysis, and the capacity for data to inform public health policies and practice. As a human, she understands the importance of contextualizing quantitative data with lived experiences.

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Assistant Research Professor of Global Health · 2019 - Present Duke Global Health Institute, University Institutes and Centers
Assistant Professor in Population Health Sciences · 2025 - Present Population Health Sciences, Basic Science Departments

Recent Publications


Uncovering determinants of perceived feasibility of TF-CBT through coincidence analysis.

Journal Article Implementation research and practice · January 2024 IntroductionA mental health provider's perception of how well an intervention can be carried out in their context (i.e., feasibility) is an important implementation outcome. This article aims to identify determinants of feasibility of trauma-focus ... Full text Cite

Is gastroschisis associated with county-level socio-environmental quality during pregnancy?

Journal Article Birth defects research · November 2023 BackgroundGastroschisis prevalence more than doubled between 1995 and 2012. While there are individual-level risk factors (e.g., young maternal age, low body mass index), the impact of environmental exposures is not well understood.Methods Full text Cite

The association between urban greenspace and psychological health among young adults in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Journal Article Environmental research · December 2022 IntroductionPsychological disorders are emerging as health priorities in Sub-Saharan Africa, specifically Ethiopia. Urban greenspace - parks, trees, and other vegetation integrated into urban form - may facilitate population psychological health, ... Full text Cite
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Recent Grants


Sustaining and Generalizing Evidence-based Mental Health interventions for children (SAGE-MH)

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Institute of Mental Health · 2021 - 2025

Positive Outcomes for Orphans: HIV Risk and Wellbeing as Young Adults

ResearchPostdoc Scholar · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2017 - 2024

Building and Sustaining Interventions for Children (BASIC): Task-sharing mental health care in low-resource settings

ResearchResearch Specialist · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2017 - 2024

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Education, Training & Certifications


University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill · 2017 Ph.D.