Dr. Mona Fouad is Professor of Medicine and Director of the Division of Preventive Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). She also is the founding director of the UAB Minority Health and Health Disparities Research Center.
Dr. Fouad has developed community-based programs to improve the health of women in rural areas. Her projects eliminated racial disparities in breast cancer screening in the Alabama Black Belt. As the inaugural chair of the UAB Commission of the Status of Women, she worked to establish the first-on-campus lactation centers, improve maternal leave policy, and promote the career advancement of women.
She has initiated projects that have broadened the access to preventive medicine for thousands of underserved people throughout the South. Under her leadership, HealthSmart, an innovative wellness facility in downtown Birmingham, provides to the community free health evaluations and screenings, nutrition and physical activity counseling and demonstrations, and a variety of health education activities.
Dr. Fouad introduced afterschool programs for nutrition and physical activity in inner-city schools to prevent the spread of childhood obesity. She has promoted education and career development to hundreds of African American students and has developed a pipeline of future minority physicians and health-care professionals.
As a scientist, she has conducted major national studies to reduce racial disparities in cancer and enhance the participation of minorities in clinical trials. She has brought in research grants upwards of $60 million to address health disparities locally, regionally, and nationally. In recognition of her scientific contributions and outstanding leadership, she has received a number of prestigious awards.
Dr. Mona Fouad has integrated all sectors of society by engaging the community with a message of social responsibility. Her life work and accomplishments in the arena of health equity are remarkable and have established her as an exceptional female scientist, educator, and leader.