Isabella Faria, MD, is a Brazilian physician and General Surgery resident at the University of Texas Medical Branch, and a former Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Transplant Surgery at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. She also served as a Research Scholar at the Harvard Health Systems Innovation Lab. A dedicated advocate for health equity in surgery and transplantation, Dr. Faria bridges clinical research, global surgery, and health systems innovation to advance access and equity for underserved communities.

Dr. Faria has authored over 35 peer-reviewed publications and led international collaborations addressing gender disparities in surgery, surgical workforce equity, and access to transplantation research. As Chair of the Associate Committee of the Association for Academic Global Surgery (AAGS) and former Co-Chair of the Gender Equity Initiative in Global Surgery (GEIGS), she has spearheaded global initiatives in gender equity, capacity-building, and mentorship, supporting over 60 early-career surgeons and residents worldwide.

Her global surgery work spans leading gender equity research on surgical workforce representation in the U.S. and Latin America, and co-developing a $500,000-awarded virtual reality hemorrhage control simulator for low-resource settings. At the Harvard Program in Global Surgery and Social Change, she contributed to national studies on pediatric trauma care and blood availability in Guatemala, India, and Brazil. Through her role at the Harvard Health Systems Innovation Lab, Dr. Faria has advanced research on oncology surgery access and health systems financing in Brazil and co-organized a global hackathon engaging 740 participants from 37 countries to design digital health solutions for underserved populations.

Combining expertise in global surgery and transplantation, Dr. Faria investigates systemic inequities in research authorship and patient access, with a focus on women and underrepresented communities. Recognized as an AASLD Emerging Liver Scholar, she aspires to build sustainable transplant and surgical care models that advance health equity worldwide.