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- American University of Beirut, Lebanon
Sawsan Abdulrahim is a Professor and Chair of public health at the Department of Health Promotion and Community Health and the WHO Collaborating Center for Health Promotion and the Behavioral Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, Lebanon. She holds a PhD in Health Behavior and Health Education from the University of Michigan, School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, USA and an MPH in Epidemiology from the San Diego State University, Graduate School of Public Health, USA. Her research interests focus on social inequalities, gender, aging and health; the health of refugees and low wage migrant workers, subjective evaluations of health and measurement of socioeconomic position in health research. She has worked as a consultant for the Oman Ministry of Health, Health Care Society, Lebanon and Welfare Association, UK.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
Caring while aging: a cross-sectional study in Lebanon on caregiver burden, mental health, and the moderating effects of social and financial resources
BackgroundA growing number of older adults provide care for spouses or relatives, yet the mental health impact of caregiving, particularly while managing their own health conditions, remains poorly understood. In Lebanon, where formal long-term care services remain limited and caregiving is largely family-based, there is a need to better understand how caregiver burden affects the...
Co-creating and evaluating a Telegram-based chatbot to encourage family planning among vulnerable women in Lebanon
Co-creating and evaluating a Telegram-based chatbot to encourage family planning among vulnerable women in Lebanon - University of Birmingham Skip to main navigation Skip to search Skip to main content University of Birmingham Home University of Birmingham Logo Help & FAQ Link opens in a new tab Search content at University of Birmingham Home Research...
Climate Hazards, Conflict-Related Displacement and Health: A Scoping Review of Impacts and Mediators
Climate hazards, intensified by climate change, impact health, with conflict displaced populations being especially vulnerable. However, there is limited systematic synthesis of evidence on this topic. We conducted a scoping review which aimed to synthesise evidence on the health impacts of climate hazards on displaced populations and identify related mediators and pre-existing stressors. 27 studies...
Adverse childhood experiences and cognitive outcomes among older adults in low-income and middle-income countries: a systematic review
ObjectivesWhile adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been consistently linked to poorer cognitive outcomes in later life, far less is known about ACEs’ contribution to dementia and cognitive ageing risk in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), despite their growing and disproportionate share of global Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) burden. This study aimed to systematically...
The Lebanon study on aging and HeAlth (LSAHA).
Background: This paper describes the design and cohort profile of the Lebanon Study on Aging and HeAlth (LSAHA), the first population-level study of Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) in an Arab country. The burden due to ADRD in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is among the highest in the world, but...
Cohort profile: the Lebanon Study on Aging and HeAlth (LSAHA)
BackgroundThis paper describes the design and cohort profile of the Lebanon Study on Aging and HeAlth (LSAHA), the first population-level study of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD) in an Arab country. The burden due to ADRD in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is among the highest in the world, but reliable...
Social networks and cognitive function of older adults in Lebanon: Findings from LSAHA‐Lebanon Study on Ageing and Health
Background Social networks have been linked to cognitive function in later life, yet few studies have explored their association with specific cognitive domains. Among these, episodic memory, crucial for daily functioning, is particularly vulnerable to aging and early cognitive decline. Existing evidence comes primarily from developed countries, with no studies conducted in the Middle East,...
Adverse childhood experiences and cognitive function among older adults in low‐and middle‐income countries: A systematic review and meta‐analysis
Background A large body of evidence suggests that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are associated with poorer cognitive functioning and cognitive impairment later in life. Yet, most of the evidence comes from high‐income countries, which often have greater social and healthcare resources and infrastructure to mitigate the effects of ACEs. We performed a systematic review and...
Promoting Family Planning via mHealth among Vulnerable Groups in Lebanon
Background: Access to family planning services remains a significant challenge for vulnerable populations in Lebanon, including Syrian refugees and low-income Lebanese women, due to persistent barriers such as cost, stigma, and limited health infrastructure. Digital health solutions offer a scalable, low-cost way to support health behaviour change, especially when grounded in social marketing principles. The...
Determinants of mental distress and death thoughts among Syrian refugee adolescent girls in Lebanon
Background: Half of refugees worldwide are children who are vulnerable to mental illness due to exposure to violence and displacement during a critical developmental phase. We examined the factors associated with mental distress among Syrian refugee adolescent girls in Lebanon, focusing on individual and family-related determinants.Methods: The study utilized cross sectional data from an early...