48th National Medical
Convention 2026

Vice President of the Learning Health System and Margaret M. and Albert B. Alkek Chair and Professor of Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, and Director of the Texas Medical Center Digestive Diseases Center. An internationally recognized physician-scientist and past president of the American Gastroenterological Association, his research focuses on chronic liver disease, hepatocellular carcinoma, Barrett's esophagus, and the epidemiology and outcomes of digestive disorders.

Assistant Professor at the University of Houston in the Department of Anthropology and Comparative Studies, the Center for Arab Studies, and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies, specializing in medical anthropology, structural violence, and displacement in MENA communities. Her multi-sited ethnographic research examines health inequalities and the politics of mortality among marginalized Arab and diasporic populations in the U.S. and abroad.

Endocrinologist and NIH K23 award recipient at Baylor College of Medicine specializing in the prevention and management of cardiometabolic disease including diabetes, obesity, and dyslipidemia. Her research on cardiometabolic risk in multi-ethnic populations informs our understanding of metabolic health disparities relevant to Arab Americans.

Associate Professor in the Department of Head and Neck Surgery at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. A dual-trained ophthalmologist and board-certified neurologist with fellowship training in neuro-ophthalmology, her research focuses on ocular oncology and optic nerve disorders.

Board-certified in internal medicine and cardiovascular disease, with training in interventional cardiology at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston. His clinical interests include peripheral artery and coronary interventions, structural heart interventions, and congenital heart defect repair.

Associate Professor at the University of Houston College of Pharmacy and 2025–2026 Fulbright U.S. Scholar. Her research bridges behavioral neuroscience and community health, with published studies on post-resettlement health among refugees and mental health outcomes in Arab and Arab American communities.

Associate Professor and Section Chief of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Chicago Medicine. A graduate of the University of Damascus, his research focuses on global mental health, refugee care, and the neurobiology of emotion in children — making him a leading voice on Arab American youth psychological wellbeing.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Michigan's Population Studies Center. Her intersectional research examines how social norms, religion, and migration context shape the reproductive and sexual health of MENA women. She has published foundational work on intimate partner violence and reproductive coercion among Arab American women in Southeast Michigan.

Assistant Professor at the Lester and Sue Smith Breast Center at Baylor College of Medicine specializing in breast oncology and high-risk prevention. Trained at Mayo Clinic, his research on race, ethnicity, and cancer genomics directly informs understanding of cancer disparities in Arab American and other minority populations.

Pharmacology researcher and Fulbright Scholar from Jordan specializing in behavioral neuroscience and stress biology with over 40 publications. She has conducted published research on anxiety and depression prevalence among Houston-based MENA residents and on mental health among Syrian refugees — bringing essential data to Arab American mental health discourse.

Epidemiologist and the 1855 Associate Professor of Family Medicine at MSU's College of Human Medicine. She serves as the Co-Director of the Robert Wood Johnson Health Equity Research for Action Coordinating Center at MSU. She also leads the SAWA Center, an initiative which is developing a community-centered research agenda for Arab and Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) American health in the U.S. She works alongside Arab/MENA American populations using community-centered approaches with a common goal of advancing health equity and wellness. Due to her extensive statistical and quantitative training, she is particularly interested in developing new methods to incorporate structural causes, like racism, into epidemiological analyses.

Physician-scientist and Research Scientist in the Department of Surgery at Houston Methodist Hospital with graduate training in Comparative Effectiveness Research from The University of Paris. Her 37 publications focus on kidney disease, transplant access, and risk prediction models to improve outcomes in underserved populations, including Arab Americans.

Associate Professor of Vascular Surgery at McGovern Medical School, UTHealth Houston, specializing in acute aortic dissection and cardiovascular outcomes in women. Founder of the Women's Vascular and Cardiac Health Initiative (WVACHI), her population-level research on sex-based cardiovascular disparities addresses the health needs of Arab American women.

Double-board certified trauma surgeon and Director of the Global Surgery Program at MUSC. A UNC graduate and former McKinsey healthcare consultant, he has operated in over 55 countries across five continents. His expertise in global surgery and cross-cultural medical care brings an essential international perspective to Arab American health access.

Associate Professor of Clinical Research and Leadership at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, where she co-directs the PhD program in Translational Health Sciences. She practiced for a decade as a physician assistant in Detroit's Hypertension and Vascular Disease Clinic, and her research focuses on cardiovascular health and racial and ethnic disparities in care.

Triple board-certified in Internal Medicine, Endocrinology, and Obesity Medicine. A graduate of Al-Mustansiriyah College of Medicine in Baghdad, she completed her internal medicine residency at Cleveland Clinic and an endocrinology, diabetes, and metabolism fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. She moderates Session 1.

Yale-trained child and adolescent psychiatrist currently practicing at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas. She also serves as President of the NAAMA North Texas Chapter, where she leads initiatives focused on professional networking, mentorship, education, and community engagement.

Assistant Professor at UT Health San Antonio and community-engaged researcher focused on family caregivers and persons living with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Her PCORI-funded work partners with diverse and Latino community stakeholders to set dementia-care research priorities — a participatory model informing her talk on Arab American research engagement.

Director of the ACCESS Community Health & Research Center in Dearborn, Michigan, where she oversees more than 70 healthcare, behavioral health, and public health programs. She holds a master's in clinical psychology from the University of Detroit Mercy and serves on Michigan's Opioid Advisory Commission and the Corewell Health East Board of Directors, with over a decade of advocacy against domestic violence in Arab American communities.

Clinical Research Fellow in Preventive Cardiology at the Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center. An American University of Beirut medical graduate, his research examines environmental and social determinants of cardiovascular and metabolic disease, including physical activity and neighborhood-level risk factors.

Wellness Dietitian at Houston Methodist, trained at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. She specializes in medical nutrition therapy and culturally informed dietary guidance, including the role of the Mediterranean diet in cardiometabolic health.

Clinical Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and a full-time hospitalist with The Women's Group of Northwestern. A graduate of Loyola Stritch School of Medicine who completed her obstetrics and gynecology residency at the University of Chicago, her interests include high-risk obstetrics, health disparities, patient advocacy, medical education, and global and community women's health.

Director of the Center for Arab Narratives at ACCESS, holding a PhD in American Culture and Arab & Muslim American Studies from the University of Michigan. He spent 12 years as Research and Content Manager at the Arab American National Museum, where he built the oral history department and community research partnerships that now anchor CAN's Community Research Review Board.

Complex General Surgical Oncology fellow at Johns Hopkins Medicine. A graduate of the University of Jordan Faculty of Medicine, she completed her general surgery residency at Johns Hopkins and is active with Arab American physician networks advancing surgical equity.

Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Emory University and Medical Director and inaugural Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Tanner Health System. Over more than three decades at Emory he performed Georgia's first domino heart transplant and the world's first totally endoscopic left ventricular resynchronization, and received the Emory School of Medicine Award of Honor in 2019.

Orthodontist and dentofacial orthopedist serving Houston and Sugar Land. He completed his orthodontic residency and Master's degree at Saint Louis University, a cleft lip and palate fellowship at SSM Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital, and an orthodontic mini-residency at Harvard School of Dental Medicine.

Professor and Division Director of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at UTHealth Houston, holder of the Thomas M. Weil Professorship, and Director of the OMS Service at Memorial Hermann Hospital. His expertise spans orthognathic and TMJ surgery, cleft lip and palate, and reconstructive surgery.

Board-certified prosthodontist with over 20 years of experience in fixed, removable, and implant dentistry. A Diplomate of the American Board of Prosthodontics, he founded Northwest Houston Prosthodontics in 2014.

Houston endodontist and Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Endodontics at UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry. She practices at Gulf Coast Endodontics.

Board-certified oral and maxillofacial surgeon at Parkway Oral Surgery & Dental Implant Center in Houston. He earned his DDS from the UCLA School of Dentistry, completed a general practice residency at Montefiore Hospital, and completed medical school and oral and maxillofacial surgery training at UTHealth Houston, serving as chief resident in his final year.

Dental Practice Transition Specialist with Henry Schein Dental Practice Transitions, advising dentists across Texas and the Gulf South on practice acquisitions, valuations, transitions, and exit-strategy planning.

Pediatric dentist practicing in Illinois and Clinical Assistant Professor and Predoctoral Pediatric Dentistry Program Director at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). She serves on the NAAMA Illinois Board and chairs the Illinois Internationally Trained Dentists Mentorship Initiative.

Houston anesthesiologist and President of the Texas Medical Board. A partner with US Anesthesia Partners, he chairs its National Legislative Committee and serves as Vice-Chair of the Clinical Governance Board for USAP Gulf Coast.

NAAMA President-Elect and Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine. A specialist in emergency psychiatry and psychosis.

Professor of Psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital, and a leading expert in child and adolescent psychopharmacology.

Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology and Immunology at Baylor College of Medicine, board-certified in anatomic and clinical pathology. She moderates Session 2.

Physician in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation at Baylor College of Medicine, with published research on interventional pain medicine. He moderates Session 1.

Clinical Associate Professor and interim director of the Longitudinal Integrated Clerkship at the University of Houston's Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine.

Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center and Baylor College of Medicine, and Director of the Fuller Laboratory.

Hematopathologist and Associate Professor of Pathology & Immunology at Baylor College of Medicine, affiliated with Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center and Texas Children's Hospital.

First-year Internal Medicine resident at Baylor College of Medicine, bringing a recent trainee's perspective to the panel.

Associate Professor and Jerold B. Katz Endowed Investigator at Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart and Vascular Center. Scientific Committee Chair for the 48th National Medical Convention.

Board-certified pulmonologist practicing sleep medicine, pulmonary, and critical care medicine in the Houston/Webster, TX area.

Chief Resident and SOEI Fellow at UTHealth Houston Radiology. He earned his Doctor of Medicine degree from Alexandria University in 2016.

Internal Medicine Chief Resident and postdoctoral imaging fellow at Houston Methodist Hospital. An aspiring cardiologist who earned his MD from the Lebanese American University.