Duaa Eldeib

Reporter

Photo of Duaa Eldeib

Duaa Eldeib is a reporter at ProPublica whose work has examined the systemic failures that led to a stillbirth crisis in the U.S., the fatal consequences of delaying care during the pandemic and the plight of hundreds of children trapped in psychiatric hospitals. She was part of a team of reporters who were among the first in the country to reveal the disproportionate and devastating effects of COVID-19 on Black Americans and collaborated with colleagues to cover the Trump administration’s Zero Tolerance policy for immigrants. Eldeib’s reporting has sparked legislative hearings and government reform and has led to the release of young men incarcerated as juveniles then later sent to adult prison for “minor” offenses. Her series on stillbirths was a finalist for the 2023 Pulitzer Prize in Explanatory Reporting.

Before joining ProPublica, Eldeib was a reporter at the Chicago Tribune, where she investigated police misuse of polygraphs in cases leading to wrongful convictions. Her stories with two colleagues uncovering children being assaulted and sexually abused at taxpayer-funded residential treatment centers was a finalist for the 2015 Pulitzer Prize in Investigative Reporting. Eldeib’s reporting also led to the exoneration of a mother who was wrongly convicted of murdering her son. She has won numerous other national and local awards and was a 2014 finalist for the Livingston Award for Young Journalists. Before joining the Tribune, Eldeib reported for the Daily Southtown, where she wrote stories exposing theft and corruption at a regional education office, which led to the arrest of the superintendent and spurred lawmakers to abolish the office.

Eldeib graduated from the University of Missouri with bachelor’s degrees in journalism and psychology and received a master’s degree in public policy from Northwestern University. She is based in Chicago

They Were the Pandemic’s Perfect Victims

The pandemic killed so many dialysis patients that their total number shrunk for the first time in nearly half a century. Few people took notice.

Legislator Pushes for Law Requiring Illinois Hospitals to Report All Assaults to Police

In response to a ProPublica investigation, Illinois State Sen. Julie Morrison said she will propose a law mandating that hospitals notify police about suspected patient-on-patient sexual assaults.

A Patient in a Psychiatric Ward Was Seen on Video Possibly Being Sexually Assaulted. No One Reported It.

Roseland Community Hospital in Chicago kept quiet about a possible sexual assault of one patient by another in its psychiatric unit. Only after ProPublica asked questions did Illinois’ public health officials alert law enforcement.

La agencia de bienestar infantil de Illinois les sigue fallando a las familias hispanohablantes

Dos años después de una investigación de ProPublica, el Departamento de Servicios para Niños y Familias de Illinois todavía no está cumpliendo con una orden de una corte federal para mejorar el servicio a las familias hispanohablantes.

Illinois’ Child Welfare Agency Continues to Fail Spanish-Speaking Families

Two years after a ProPublica investigation, the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services still is not complying with a federal court order to better serve Spanish-speaking families.

Una crisis de cánceres sin diagnosticar está surgiendo en el segundo año de la pandemia

Una trabajadora de una fábrica no quiso pedir baja por enfermedad ni contagiarse de COVD-19, así que intentó ignorar el dolor. Ahora tiene cáncer en estado 4.

A Crisis of Undiagnosed Cancers Is Emerging in the Pandemic’s Second Year

A factory worker didn’t want to call in sick or catch COVID-19, so she tried to ignore the pain. Now she has stage 4 cancer.

Judges Are Locking Up Children for Noncriminal Offenses Like Repeatedly Disobeying Their Parents and Skipping School

Michigan’s juvenile justice system is archaic. Counties act with little oversight, and the state keeps such poor data it doesn’t know how many juveniles it has in custody or what happens to them once they’re in the system.

Still No Answers to Lawmakers’ Questions About Children Stuck in Psychiatric Hospitals

Years after a ProPublica Illinois investigation revealed children in state care were being held in psychiatric hospitals beyond medical necessity, officials still haven’t addressed it. “This has not gone away,” said one state senator.

Hundreds of Children Are Stuck in Psychiatric Hospitals Each Year Despite the State’s Promises to Find Them Homes

The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services promised to rescue children languishing in psychiatric hospitals for weeks and sometimes months beyond medical necessity. But the state hasn’t delivered and the problem has only gotten worse.

Illinois Has Promised to “Infuse Love” in Its Juvenile Justice System, but What Will Actually Change?

A state plan that focuses on moving incarcerated children from prison-like settings to “dorm-like” regional residential centers is being described as a sea change.

Opioid Overdoses Keep Surging in Chicago, Killing Black People on the West Side

Half of Cook County’s confirmed opioid-related deaths have been among Black residents, even though they make up less than a quarter of the county’s population. Officials warn that the COVID-19 pandemic has overshadowed the crisis.

Police Brutality, COVID-19 and Overdoses in Chicago Follow the Same Deadly Pattern

Our country’s long history of structural racism stands at the center of why police brutality, COVID-19 and the opioid crisis are disproportionately killing black Americans, including in Chicago.

Overdose Deaths Have Skyrocketed in Chicago, and the Coronavirus Pandemic May Be Making It Worse

Opioid-related deaths in Cook County have doubled since this time last year, and similar increases are happening across the country. “If you’re alone, there’s nobody to give you the Narcan,” said one coroner.

Families Were Grieving and Planning Funerals. They Still Wanted to Share Their Stories.

We spoke with families and friends of 22 victims of Chicago’s first 100 recorded deaths from COVID-19. Here’s how we kept reporting, and what those families want you to know.

COVID-19 Took Black Lives First. It Didn’t Have To.

In Chicago, 70 of the city’s 100 first recorded victims of COVID-19 were black. Their lives were rich, and their deaths cannot be dismissed as inevitable. Immediate factors could — and should — have been addressed.

Chicago Lakeshore Hospital Closes After Years of Abuse Allegations but Cites “the COVID-19 Pandemic”

A long-troubled psychiatric facility, which has treated hundreds of children in state care, shuts down but says the move is temporary.

Rural Counties Consider an Alternative Type of Social Distancing — Kicking Chicago Out of Illinois

In counties where COVID-19 has yet to hit, a timeless topic is flaring up again: Would Illinois be better off without Chicago?

Calls to Illinois’ Child Abuse Hotline Dropped by Nearly Half Amid the Spread of Coronavirus. Here’s Why That’s Not Good News.

Child welfare officials fear the decline in hotline abuse reports is only because children are out of school, and teachers, social workers and counselors aren’t able to see signs of abuse.

Thousands of Foster Children Were Sent Out of State to Mental Health Facilities Where Some Faced Abuse and Neglect

State officials are supposed to send foster children to out-of-state facilities only as a last resort, but in Illinois alone, it has happened dozens of times. In many cases, officials failed to adequately monitor their treatment and well-being.

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