Dr. Andrea Krüsi PhD

Andrea Krüsi, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of British Columbia and a Research Scientist with the Centre for Gender and Sexual Health Equity. Dr. Krüsi’s work focuses broadly on the criminalization of sexuality, with a particular focus on how intersecting social and structural contexts, such as laws and policies, shape the health, safety and wellbeing of marginalized cis and trans women.

Dr. Krüsi leads a community-based participatory qualitative and arts-based research program focused on evaluating the impact of evolving legislative frameworks and criminal sanctions on the health and wellbeing of marginalized women. The aim is to: (1) document the intersecting gendered lived-experiences of evolving legislative frameworks (e.g. Protection of Communities and Exploited Persons Act and the criminalization of HIV non-disclosure) on health and social inequities among marginalized women and (2) to characterize trajectories of incarceration and community reintegration of women living with or affected by HIV to identify factors that influence access to social supports and HIV prevention and care during and after incarceration. This research is guided by a peer advisory board, as well as, longstanding collaborations with a wide variety of community organizations including Sex Workers United Against Violence, Canadian Aboriginal AIDS Network, YouthCo, the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network and Pivot Legal Society.

Dr. Krüsi’s research is supported by operating funds from the Vancouver Foundation and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) as well as through a Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research Scholar award. She is currently recruiting graduate students and postdoctoral fellows.