Hajj Injury Lab Research Team

Dr. Samar Al-Hajj

Dr. Samar Al-Hajj Assistant Research Professor, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut Lebanon. She is the Founding Director for Middle East and North Africa Program for Advanced Injury Research (MENA PAIR), a leading program to assess the injury burden in Lebanon and the region and to train the next genration of injury experts. Dr. Hajj is an Adj. Investigator – British Columbia Injury Research and Prevention Unit (BCIRPU), BC Children’s Hospital and Research Institute, Vancouver Canada.

Dr. Hajj completed her undergraduate and graduate studies and research training in Canada and the United States. She pursued her global research training (Epidemiology) at Harvard University. Dr. Hajj led multiple injury research studies to assess the burden of injury morbidity and mortality in Lebanon and the Eastern Mediterranean Region. She serves as PI on multiple injury studies including the first national child road traffic injury study, child school injury, and burns among refugees in a humanitarian setting. Moreover, she led studies with international collaborators to examine the status of child and older adults injury in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR).

Dr. Hajj is the recipient of several international and regional awards.

Fadia Shebbo

Fadia Shebbo is a PhD Candidate in Epidemiology at at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and MENA PAIR scholar. Her research interest lies in the intersection of epidemiology, public health, and injury with a general interest in road safety and a particular interest in child passenger safety. Research studies involving children offer the opportunity to work with individuals during their developmental stages, which can be highly impactful and rewarding.  Her research approaches involve mixed-method design and implementation science. Fadia’s vision is to expand my research into sustainable implementation science programs that create a long-lasting, meaningful impact. Additionally, in her future endeavors, she aims to adopt a multidisciplinary approach, integrating not only public health and medicine but also insights from biomechanics to better understand and address road safety issues holistically.

Nour Abou Khalil 

Nour Abou Khalil, MSc, MPH is a Ph.D. candidate in Epidemiology at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and MENA PAIR scholar, pursuing her dissertation studies at the American University of Beirut and Yale University. With a multidisciplinary background in Biology, Neuroscience, Public Health, and Health administration, Nour brings a comprehensive perspective to her research work. As a scholar under the NIH-funded MENA PAIR program for advanced trauma and injury research, Nour’s research is in the field of neuroepidemiology, with a special focus on traumatic brain injuries. Currently, Nour is working on several research projects, including a systematic review related to traumatic brain injuries, and a scoping review related to school-based injury interventions. She is also coordinating the Injury and Concussion Awareness Recognition and Education (ICARE) program, which provides school professionals with the knowledge, skills, and resources needed to effectively prevent, recognize, and manage concussions.

Nagham AlRassamny

Nagham Alrassamny, is a PhD Candidate at the Hariri School of Nursing at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and MENA PAIR scholar. She earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing sciences from AUB  in 2018. She worked as a registered nurse at the American University of Beirut Medical Center for three years, where she developed an interest in addressing community health issues beyond the hospital setting. Nagham pursued a Master of Science in Global Urban Health in Germany in 2022 with a DAAD scholarship. Her thesis explored the health consequences of climate change across different social strata. After completing her master’s, she returned to Lebanon to work as a primary healthcare coordinator at the Ministry of Public Health, gaining experience in community health and contributing to research projects in the primary healthcare sector.

Nagham focuses her research on assessing concussion among school children and providing training to school nurses on the recognition and management of concussion within school settings.

Ahmad Al-Madhawi

Ahmed Al- Madhwahi is an MSc. candidate in Epidemiology at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and MENA PAIR scholar. He graduated with a dual degree in Environmental Health and Public Administration, and a minor in Philosophy. He is currently an MS in Epidemiology program and a MENA PAIR scholar. His research focuses on traumatic brain injuries and drowning. In the near future, he plans to work with international organizations like the WHO to advance injury research in the region and explore initiatives related to injury prevention and control. He aims to pursue his PhD in collaboration with academic institutions and research centers globally.

Reine Obeid

Reine Obeid is an MSc. candidate at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and MENA PAIR scholar. She completed her undergraduate in biology and premedical studies at AUB. Her researh focuses on older adults  injury prevention, mental health, and communicable disease trends, particularly in politically unstable and resource-limited settings. She has contributed to numerous research projects, including the evaluation of age-friendly healthcare models, fall prevention interventions, and the impact of crisis medical response training. Reine aspire to integrate clinical practice and research as a physician to advance equitable healthcare delivery.

Ghinwa Abdallah

Ghinwa Abdallah is a MSc candidate in Epidemiology at the American University of Beirut and a scholar in the MENA PAIR. Ghinwa completed the Scholars in Health Research Program (SHARP) Graduate Diploma at AUB in 2023. With a background in clinical pharmacy and seven years of experience in retail pharmacy, her research, focuses on pharmacoepidemiology, particularly poisoning and intoxication. Current projects include a scoping review on acute poisoning in pediatric emergency departments in the MENA region and predictive modeling to enhance healthcare responses to poisoning in the U.S.

Rewa Tawil

Rewa Tawil is an MSc candidate at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and a MENA PAIR scholar. She pursued her bachelor degree in biology with a concentration in molecular and cell biology at the American University, Cairo. During her undergraduate study,  she completed her internship at the emergency department, where she had the opportunity to shadow trauma ED physicians. Rewa is currently working on motorcycle injuries, more specifically the types of injuries and their severity through analytical studies. She is also interested in the study of reproductive and prenatal epidemiology with particular emphasis on understading the impact of injuries during pregnancies and how it affects the fetus and the mother. She’s also interested in examining how injuries during the girls upbringings girls may affect their reproductive system.

Shaymaa Barakat

Shaymaa Barakat is an MSc candidate in Epidemiology at the American University of Beirut (AUB) and MENA PAIR scholar. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Beirut Arab University, where she had the opportunity to shadow researchers working on various microbiology research projects. Shaymaa current research focuses on injury epidemiology, particularly pediatric traumatic brain injury (pTBI). She’s working with an international team on a systematic review to examine the incidence, mechanisms, and risk factors associated with pTBI in the United States.

Moreover, Shaymaa is interested in assessing the physical and mental health impacts of forced displacement on vulnerable populations with the aim to identify patterns and risk factors of injuries to inform evidence-based interventions.