Date: November 7 & 8, 2025
On November 7 and 8, 2025, the Center for Women in Business (CWiB) at the Suliman S. Olayan School of Business (OSB) at the American University of Beirut (AUB), in partnership with the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility (REI) at the American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUBMC), held the second cohort of the two-day workshop dedicated to building leadership capacity for women in Lebanon's healthcare sector including public health, titled “Introduction to Building Women's Leadership in Health and Public Health".
The workshop brought together 21 women healthcare workers from diverse regions, organizations and medical fields in Lebanon and at various stages of their professional journeys. It aimed to strengthen leadership, management, and essential soft skills among female professionals working in healthcare and public health, equipping them with the tools needed to advance their careers while contributing to more equitable, resilient, and people-centered health systems.
Team
Day One
The program opened with welcoming remarks by Dean Yusuf Sidani, followed by an inspiring speech from the WHO's Regional Director of the Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office (EMRO), Dr. Hanan Balkhi who shared lessons from her leadership journey in healthcare, highlighting the importance of self-confidence, expertise in a particular area, conflict management skills as well as transparency and accountability, among others as crucial factors for becoming a successful leader.
The welcome and introduction concluded with a talk by Her Excellency, Hilde Haraldstad, Norway's Ambassador to Lebanon, who also shared meaningful reflections on women's representation in the medical field. She highlighted Norway's progress, where women now comprise most healthcare professionals, while addressing the persisting challenge of underrepresentation in senior leadership. Her remarks offered both global perspective and local resonance — a call to continue advancing equity and inclusion in leadership.
The workshop's opening session on the core foundations of leadership in healthcare was led by Dr. Ghina Ghazeeri and featured an intervention by an OBGYN Resident at AUBMC, Dr. Zeina Chehade who demonstrated leadership lessons learned from rebuilding through multiple crises, and the impact of collaboration and teamwork in creating effective community initiatives. The second session was led by Dr. Rola Chami-Malaeb on transformational change, and featured insights by Ms. Manal Ayoub, a fertility registered nurse, who shared her experience pitching an idea to improve patient experience. Dr. Nada Khaddage concluded the day with a powerful session on negotiating effectively to advance leadership with confidence.
Day Two
A new topic was introduced with the second cohort, on building an online personal brand for professionals in healthcare, delivered by Dr. Jessy Kfoury, Senior Lecturer in Marketing at OSB. This was followed by Dr. Maya Romani who led a session on resilient leadership to prevent burnout. Dr. Mona Itani then discussed intrapreneurship and strategies for fostering innovation within organizations. The program closed with a session led by Dr. Eveline Hitti, Chair and Professor of Clinical Emergency Medicine at AUBMC, who inspired practical, ethical decision-making skills and competence in times of uncertainty.
Outcome
With 21 women professionals from various areas of healthcare attending the second cohort of this project, this initiative was able to continue its extended impact in medical centers across Leba non throughout the duration of the workshop which encompassed distressing stories that the healthcare sector in Lebanon had suffered, learned leadership, and ways that women can continue to lead and keep their teams afloat, surviving, and thriving in a sector like this one.
The workshop concluded with a certificate distribution ceremony, and a strengthened network of women prepared to transform healthcare while supporting one another through their learning and leadership journeys. Participants were left equipped with tools to lead with empathy and confidence, challenge gender barriers, and sustain well-being in demanding professional environments.
