George Rutherford, III

George Rutherford, III, MD, MA is a Professor in Epidemiology & Biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, where he also serves as Director of the Prevention and Public Health Group. His career spans decades of work in infectious disease epidemiology with a primary focus on HIV/AIDS prevention and control, both internationally and domestically.

Dr. Rutherford's research interests encompass global health equity, implementation science, child and adolescent health, and the epidemiology of infectious diseases including Ebola, Zika, and tuberculosis. His work is primarily funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention through the Presidential Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), with additional projects addressing tuberculosis epidemiology in California, childhood injury prevention, immunizations, and bioterrorism preparedness.

His publication record demonstrates consistent contributions to understanding infectious disease transmission dynamics, particularly in resource-limited settings across Africa, Latin America, and Asia. Recent work has expanded to include COVID-19 epidemiology, vaccine effectiveness, and the intersection of social determinants with health outcomes.

• UCSF 2009 Holly Smith Award for Exceptional Service to the School of Medicine
• Royal College of Medicine 2010 Fellow
• National Research Council, National Academy of Sciences 2011 Lifetime National Associate
• Piedmont Post 2021 Piedmont Citizen of the Year
• UCSF 2021 Commendation for Exceptional Volunteerism and University Service

As Principal Investigator on numerous NIH-funded projects, Dr. Rutherford has led technical assistance initiatives in Namibia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Ghana to strengthen HIV strategic information systems. He is a member of the AIDS Research Institute's Executive Committee and has contributed significantly to global health security through his work with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.