About

About me, what I do and why.

I am a medical doctor and a specialist in bioethics and public health. I hold a master degree in bioethics from the University of Toronto (Canada) and PhD in bioethics from the University of Birmingham, UK. I have worked extensively in the fields of health research, medical ethics, and public health for the last 15 years.​​

Teaching is not a job. It’s a legacy.

I do research. I help researchers. I give consultations to many institutions as small as a local community-based organization and as big as the WHO and MSF. I speak at conferences. I blog and vlog. But my passion remains in and with teaching. I beleive this is how I remain longer and bigger than my age and space.

Scroll down to know more about that and more.

Academic Qualifications

PhD, University of Birmingham (2013-2017). Title of the thesis: Ethical Considerations in Health Research conducted during Armed Conflicts – Case Study from Darfur, West Sudan (2004-2012). My doctoral study was fully funded by Wellcome Trust grant no. 099385/Z/12/Z.
Supervisors: Prof Angus Dawson and Prof Heather Draper
Master in Bioethics, Joint Centre for Bioethics, University of Toronto, Canada)
Instructed and Mentored by: Prof. Ross Upshur, Prof Peter Singer, Prof Monica Brannigan, Prof. Barbara Secker and Dr. Jim Lacery
1st part clinical MD in Community Medicine, Sudan Medical Specialization Board
MBBS, Faculty of Medicine, Al-Zaeem Al-Azhary University (Sudan)

Appointments and Employment History

July 2021 – present: Assistant Professor in Medical Ethics and Law, School of Medicine at Trinity College Dublin.

August 2020 – June 2021: Assistant professor of bioethics and epidemiology at King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh. My tasks include the membership of the students’ selection committee, the central and student’s research committees, and the Institutional Review Board (IRB), along with teaching of following courses for undergraduate and MPH students:

  • Advanced Experimental Study Designs (EPBS614)
  • Advanced Observational Study Designs (EPBS524)
  • Health Research Methods (PPHI523)
  • Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (EPBS621)
  • Legal Aspects of Health Information Management (HIM 329)
  • Environmental Health (PPHI 514)

April 2016-April 2019: Assistant professor of medical ethics and professionalism, Farabi Medical Colleges, Riyadh. My tasks included the teaching of bioethics and public health to the undergraduate medical and dentistry students and helping in other academic and quality-related tasks. Other administrative and academic tasks included:

  1. Member of the College Council
  2. Member of the Curriculum Management Committee
  3. Vice Chair of the Research Unit
  4. Head of the Students’ Rights & Discipline Committee
  5. Member and vice-chair of the Research Committee
  6. Course director for: Medical Ethics & Professionalism (MEP 351), Community Medicine & Epidemiology (EPCM 361), and Research Methods & Evidence-Based Healthcare (EBHC 481)

Jan. 2013 – Jul. 2018: Full-Time Postgraduate Researcher at the University of Birmingham. Title of the PhD thesis is about the ethical issues related to the conduct of research in conflict-affected areas. My case study is in Darfur, west Sudan. It covers the research involving humans conducted by the international NGOs during the humanitarian crisis in Darfur from 2004 till the end of 2012 using extensive analytical review of literature, systematic review, qualitative empirical project and the development of an empirically-informed, philosophically-robust ethical framework for the conduct of research in humanitarian settings.

June 2010 – Nov. 2012: Assistant professor, Department of Bioethics, College of Medicine – King Fahad Medical City, where I have created the first curriculum in medical ethics and established the first department of bioethics at the college. My tasks included teaching of bioethics to undergraduate medical students, assist in conducting and reviewing research and research proposals, assist in developing ethical guidelines, provide ethics consultations, and assist in the organization and delivery of training activities for clinicians and faculty staff. I was a judge in the Annual Students’ Research Symposia. I was also a member of the Institutional Review Board, Patients’ Rights Committee, and the Clinical Ethics Committee of the medical city.

June 2009 – June 2010: Epidemiology medical doctor and a technical & research consultant at Dengue Fever Control Program, Ministry of Health (Jeddah Province, Saudi Arabia). My tasks included periodic epidemiological reporting of dengue cases, training of staff, technical assistance to researchers, and to help in developing guidelines and protocols.

July – September 2009: Senior Project Officer, Mapping African Review Capacity (MARC) Project, Council of Health Research and Development (COHRED). MARC is funded by EU grant and run jointly by Geneva-based COHRED and the University of Kuazulu Natal in South Africa. My main tasks included planning and initiation of MARC project activities, mainly to work with the project team to develop and update an African map of research and research ethics review capacity. The interactive map is available on (http://www.healthresearchweb.org/).

June 2008 – June 2009: Deputy Director, Research Directorate, a subdivision of the Planning Department in the Federal Ministry of Health (Sudan); the department responsible for planning, policy formulation, health information, and health economics. My tasks included the representation of Sudan in national and international forums related to research, help in developing ethical and technical guidelines for research, provide technical assistance to researchers and policymakers, and to help in training staff on research ethics.

Sep. 2007 – Jun. 2008: Fulltime master student at the University of Toronto, Canada.  During the practicum, I have contributed to teaching sessions for the medical students at the UoT and represented the Joint Center for Bioethics’ (with 3 colleagues) at the National Bioethics Conference in Ottawa, 2008.

Sep. 2006 – Sep. 2007: Epidemiology medical doctor and technical & researcher consultant at Dengue Fever Control Program, Ministry of Health (Jeddah Province, Saudi Arabia). My tasks included periodic epidemiological reporting of dengue cases, training of staff, technical assistance to researchers, and to help in developing guidelines and protocols.

April – June 2006: National Primary Health Care (PHC) Officer, World Health Organization (Nyala sub-office, South Darfur, Sudan). My main tasks included planning and monitoring the PHC activities in collaboration with the state ministry of health, international NGOs and other UN agencies, and the coordination and collaboration with the UN agencies providing humanitarian aid in south Darfur, especially for refugees and internally displaced persons. I was also responsible for the regular follow-up of the performance of PHC centres in South Darfur through auditory visits.

June 2004- April 2006: Director of Researchers’ Training and Capacity Building Unit at the Research Directorate, (Federal Ministry of Health, Sudan). My tasks included the design, implementation and follow-up of the training activities conducted by the department.

January 2003- June 2004 Internship Clinical Training:

– Internship assignments-16 months, Jan 2003- June 2004 in Teaching & University hospitals in Khartoum, Sudan.