Dr. Hanan Abdul Rahim Dean of the College of Health Sciences at Qatar University, the country’s largest national university. She has a PhD in Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine from the University of Oslo, Norway (2003); a MSc in Biology from Illinois State University, IL, USA (1994), and a BSc in Biology from Salem College, NC, USA (1992).

Dr. Abdul Rahim has over 20 years of experience in the field of public health. She is the founding Coordinator of the BSc in Public Health program at Qatar University and one of the founding faculty members of Qatar’s first Master of Public Health (MPH) program. In 2008, Dr. Abdul Rahim became one of the founding members of the Social and Economic Survey Research Institute (SESRI) at Qatar University, the country’s first academic-based survey research organization. As the Associate Director of SESRI, she was instrumental in the planning and execution of a number of large population-based social and health surveys feeding into policy making.

Dr. Abdul Rahim’s research interests are at the intersection of social science and public health, with a special interest in the social determinants of noncommunicable diseases and the health and wellbeing of women. She has participated in a number of funded research studies and has authored a range of research and policy-oriented articles and reports in leading academic journals, including the Lancet, Health Policy, and Health Policy and Planning.

Dr. Abdul Rahim is an active figure in the regional public health community. She has provided training and consultation to a number of international health and development agencies, including UNFPA and EMRO/WHO. At the national level, Dr. Abdul Rahim is a member of the National Public Health Committee and the National Data Observatory Committee in Qatar.