Huda M. Ayas, Ed.D. ’06, M.B.A. ’98, M.H.S.A. ’93, founder and executive director of the Office of International Medicine Programs (IMP), was recently named associate dean for international medicine. Ayas, who has served in a leadership capacity at SMHS for 20 years, has established and managed upward of 125 global partnerships and affiliations in more than 50 countries and has developed and implemented many international medical education and training programs.
“Dr. Ayas established and developed this office from the ground up,” said Jeffrey S. Akman, M.D. ’81, RESD ’85, Walter A. Bloedorn Professor of Administrative Medicine, vice president for health affairs, and dean of SMHS. “She has developed an international reputation as someone who is dedicated to the health and well-being of our global community through the education, training, and development of physicians and other medical professionals.”
Within IMP, Ayas and her team have established a vast array of medical education and training programs, training more than 10,000 international and GW faculty, students, and staff since 1994. Ayas also serves as the director of the global health track for M.D. students, which is designed to increase intercultural sensitivity and awareness about international health systems, as well as regional diseases, while teaching students to assess the specific health needs of countries at various stages of development.
