Clinical Professor
Health Administration
Biography
Stephen F. Gambescia, PhD, MBA, MEd, MLS, MHum, MCHES is Professor of Health Services Administration with continuing responsibilities in the College of Nursing and Health Professions as Director of the Doctor of Health Science program, with 18 years of service in three colleges within Drexel and past academic administrative roles. His areas of research are in macro public policy in a range of areas such as public health, healthcare, health promotion/disease prevention, education, social welfare, nonprofit management, sport and society, and socio-cultural issues. His publications in peer-reviewed journals is approaching 90. Aside from academic publishing in these areas he writes commentaries, for which some are syndicated. He has over 100 published commentaries in major media outlets to date in the areas of health, education, and social policies; media studies; political philosophy and government, sport and society, religion, business, socio-cultural issues and some are on the lighter side.
Dr. Gambescia has published several books and several book chapters with two books used in teaching his courses: The Healthcare Nonprofit: Keys to Effective Management and A Study Guide for Public Policymaking in the US. The latter is used in healthcare policy courses which he teaches at all three levels (UG, Grad, and Doctoral). This book serves as a primer for any public policy course such as health, education, business, economics, and social welfare. His co-edited book in the healthcare nonprofit is one of few practitioner-oriented books that serve as a primer for anyone working in nonprofits today. Two significant chapters in the book Ethics in Health Education and Promotion walk the reader through the epistemic challenge of the first step in public policymaking as Problem Definition: Ethics and the contemporary health promotion and health education specialist and Communicating with confidence and integrity in J. Vogelzang, Ed.; Elsevier Publishing Group. He has challenged researchers in the areas of sport and society in publishing “A research agenda for combined male and female sport competition” in Delta Epsilon Sigma Journal, LXVIII (2), pp 20-29 and wrote a provocative article to have schools consider not sponsoring youth football to “Get our children off the gridiron” parts one and two in Delta Epsilon Sigma Journal, LXII (2), 81-85; LXII (1), 33-36.
Dr. Gambescia has been one of few public advocates to keep recreational use of cannabis from becoming legal in PA. He has three primary research studies in this area: “How State Laws Explicate Quality Patient Care in the Use of Medical Marijuana in Their Initial Legislative Acts.” “Content Analysis of Risk/Benefit Communication in a Metropolitan Daily Newspaper’s Sunday HEALTH Section, for Use of Marijuana: A Multi-year Review” and “A Briefing on the Marketing of Recreational Marijuana in the US State: Regulations, Risks, and Responsible Compliance and Considerations for Enforcement.” Working with several teams he has published scoping reviews in school-based nutrition education and behavioral interventions for Spain, Italy, and the Republic of Iran and special populations: Deaf/Hard of Hearing and the Visually Impaired. Similarly, in working with teams of investigators, he has prepared and has out for review several manuscripts looking at research conducted when health professional programs (nursing, pharmacy, physical therapy, and dentistry) had to pivot to e-learning during the COVID-19 virus pandemic shut down. He and a first-year medical student looked at the COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among university students in the Arab States.
Areas of Expertise
- Business Communication
- Business Education
- Business Ethics
- Health Services/ Hospital Administration
- Public Administration
- Nonprofit Management
- Public Policy Analysis
- Public Health Management
- Media Studies
- Business Communications
- Health Services/Hospital Administration
Selected Works
Articles
Cote, M, Aboul-Enein, B. H, Gambescia, Stephen F., Keller, T.,, and Dodge, E, Nutrition education interventions for the d/Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing: A systematic scoping review. Health Communication. (Aug 2025).
Gambescia, Stephen F., Aboul-Enein, B. H.,, Keller, T.,, Almoayad, F, and Benajiba, N., Effectiveness of school-based nutrition interventions in Italy: A scoping review. Food Science & Nutrition (Jul 2025).
Aboul-Enein, B. H.,, Gambescia, Stephen F., Keller, T, Kelly, P, and Benajiba, N, A scoping review of school-based nutrition education interventions in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Journal of School Nursing (May 2025).
Aboul-Enein, B. H, Benajiba, N, Gambescia, Stephen F., Blanco, S., and Keller, T, A scoping review of school-based nutrition interventions conducted in Spain. Lifestyle Medicine 6 (Apr 2025):1-7.
Gambescia, Stephen F., Aliens among us: Ten surprising truths about Gen. Z. Journal of Health Administration Education 40 (Oct 2024):741-743.
Gambescia, Stephen F., A research agenda for combined male and female sport competition. Delta Epsilon Sigma Journal LXVIII (Nov 2023):20-29.
Malak, H., and Gambescia, Stephen F., Report of faculty experiences when team teaching in higher education.. International Journal of Contemporary Education 7 (Aug 2023):2575-3185..
Malak, H., and Gambescia, Stephen F., Team teaching in higher education: Personalities, leadership styles, and preferences. International Journal of Contemporary Education 6 (Apr 2023):50-64.
Alber, J. M, Gambescia, Stephen F., Green, L, McLeroy, K., Sofalvi, A, and Auld, M. E., Highlighting contributions of behavioral and social science in advancing public health: Where we&#-775232;ve come, where we&#-775232;re headed. Journal of Public Health Management and Practice 27 (Nov 2021):E220-E227.
Hewitt, A., Gambescia, Stephen F., and Kiel, J., Message from the Guest Editors: Managing the COVID-19 Disruption: Online Learning Innovations, Leadership Models, and Best Practices for Health Administration Education. Journal of Healthcare Administration Education 38 (Spring 2021):239-246(8).
Waite, R., Mensinger, J., Wojciechowicz, C., Colistra, A., and Gambescia, Stephen F., Examining pre-post results: Kouzes and Posner&#-775232;s LPI amid undergraduate health professions students in a leadership program. Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education. 11 (Jan 2019):134-159.
Gambescia, Stephen F., and Zhong, C., Attributes used in hospital services’ advertisements in a metropolitan newspaper’s Sunday health section. Health Marketing Quarterly 35 (Jan 2019):1-16.
Gambescia, Stephen F., and Early, J.O., Consider all stakeholders in quality assurance of preprofessional education. Pedagogy in Health Promotion: The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning 3 (Dec 2017):215-220.
Gambescia, Stephen F., Get our children off the gridiron: Part two. Delta Epsilon Sigma Journal LXII (Spring 2017):81-85.
Schwartz, J., and Gambescia, Stephen F., A literature review of research on what has become of accelerated second-degree baccalaureate nursing graduates. Nursing Education Perspectives 38 (Jan 2017):29-31.
Gambescia, Stephen F., Lysoby, L., Perko, M., and Sheu, J. J., Experience documentation in assessing professional practice or work experience: Lessons from granting advanced certification to health education specialists. Journal of Continuing Higher Education (Nov 2016):187-195.
Gambescia, Stephen F., Get our children off the gridiron: Part one. Delta Epsilon Sigma Journal LXII (Fall 2016):33-36.
Gambescia, Stephen F., and Sahl, M., Exploratory study in how professionalism is explicated in undergraduate degrees in a health sciences college. Academy of Educational Leadership Journal 193 (Apr 2016):141-154.
Gambescia, Stephen F., Teacher prep in using cinema in the classroom. Journal of Health Education Teaching Techniques 2 (Nov 2015):36-46.
Gambescia, Stephen F., and Palucci, R., Are advertisements for online degree programs sending the right message to prospective students. Journal of Health Administration Education 32 (Fall 2015):605-612.
Mast, L., Gambescia, Stephen F., Hewitt, A., and Zimmerman, D., Online healthcare management education: A nod to the past and a vision for the future. Journal of Health Administration Education 32 (Fall 2015):423-26.
Gambescia, Stephen F., and Donnelly, G., A systems approach to handling student &#-775232;issues&#-775232; in higher education.. Journal of Allied Health 44 (Oct 2015):183-187.
Mast, L., and Gambescia, Stephen F., Assessing online education and accreditation for healthcare management programs.. Journal of Health Administration Education 32 (Mar 2015):427-467.
Anselmie, K., Glasgow, M. E., and Gambescia, Stephen F., Using a student conduct committee to foster professional accountability.. Journal of Professional Nursing 30 (Oct 2014):481-485.
Gambescia, Stephen F., A brief on writing an abstract. Education for Health 26 (May 2023):122-125.
Gambescia, Stephen F., A process for updating a philosophy of education statement. Health Promotion Practice 14 (Jan 2013):10-14.
Gambescia, Stephen F., Enlightenment thinking could bring health care to all Americans. Philosophy and Public Policy Quarterly 28 (Jan 2008):19.
Books
Gambescia, Stephen F., A Study Guide on Public Policymaking in the United States. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt, (2024).
Gambescia, Stephen F., The Healthcare Nonprofit: Keys to Effective Management. Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press, (2019).
Gambescia, Joseph M., and Gambescia, Stephen F., Reflections on a Pilgrimage to Rome on the Occasion of the Canonization of St. John Neumann. NA: CreateSpace, (2016).
Gambescia, Stephen F., “Every child, no matter how many, is special.”. NA: CreateSpace, (2015).
Gambescia, Stephen F., and Gonzalez, Evelyn, Managing A Public Speaker Bureau: A Manual for Health and Human Services Organizations. New York: Springer, (2005).
Awards
2024 Physician Assistant Service Award (Drexel University’s PA Program )
2022 College of Nursing and Health Professions People of Purpose Award for leadership in Drexel’s COVID-19 testing and vaccination administration 2020-2022. (Drexel University/ CNHP)
2021 American Hospital Association’s Excellence in Teaching Health Policy (Association of University Programs in Healthcare Administration)
2016 Distinguished Fellow (Society for Public Health Education )
2015 Society for Public Health Education Presidential Award for Service to the Undergraduate programs approval review (SABPAC) (Society for Public Health Education )