Several Wayne State University School of Medicine faculty members will be featured speakers during the ACCESS ninth Arab Health Summit, scheduled to be held virtually Oct. 19-21.

The summit serves as a platform for public health leaders and researchers in the United States to connect with their global counterparts. This year’s theme is “Advancing Health Equity for Women Amidst a Pandemic.”

Keynote speaker Sonia Hassan, M.D., will present “A Multi-Dimensional Model for Women's Health” at 9:30 a.m. Oct. 19. Dr. Hassan is an associate vice president at WSU, a professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, and founder and director of the Office of Women’s Health and Make Your Date, a program to reduce preterm birth in Detroit. She co-chairs Michigan’s Maternal Infant Health and Equity Collaborative.

Her presentation will illustrate the breadth of knowledge on women’s health equity during the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting local, national and global issues and barriers that developed to disproportionately impact women since March 2020.

From 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. Oct. 19, “The Power of Mobilizing Youth Activities in the Community” will feature Dean Mark E. Schweitzer, M.D.; Rouba Ali-Fehmi, M.D., professor and vice chair of Pathology; Malaak Elhage, a WSU undergraduate student and president of the WSU chapter of the National Arab American Medical Association; Omar Fehmi, a student at the University of Michigan; Layal Bou Harfouch, research program coordinator at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; and Nidal Moukaddam, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences at the Baylor College of Medicine.

Cynthia Arfken, Ph.D., professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, will participate on a panel discussion titled “Culturally Responsive Healthcare: Addressing Mental Health and Substance Use Prevention and Treatment Needs of Women Living in Southeast Michigan” from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Oct. 20.

On Oct. 21, Bibban Deol, M.D., assistant professor of Internal Medicine, Division of Geriatrics, will take part in the panel  “A Discussion of Healthy Aging in Female Populations” from 9 to 10 a.m.

From 10 to 11 a.m., the panel discussion “Healthy Women, Healthy Communities: Building a Post-Pandemic Infrastructure for Treating Non-Communicable Diseases” will include Phillip Levy, M.D., M.P.H., associate professor of Emergency Medicine and associate director of Clinical Research; Rhonda Dailey, M.D., assistant professor of Family Medicine and Public Health Sciences; and Linda Jaber, PharmD, professor of Pharmacy Practice.

Wayne Health is a leading sponsor of the summit.

For the full agenda and to register, visit https://whova.com/web/acces_202109