Hibah Osman, MD, MPH
Palliative Care Physician
Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Assistant Professor
Harvard Medical School
Hibah Osman is a palliative care physician at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI) and Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School. Her work focuses on the development of palliative care in her home country of Lebanon and across the Middle East through policy development, advocacy and capacity building.
Key Roles & Accomplishments
- Member of Regional Expert Network on palliative care – World Health Organization Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office (WHO-EMRO)
- Board member International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care (IAHPC)
- Member of the National Committee on Pain Control and Palliative Care in the Ministry of Public Health and Chair of its Subcommittee on Practice
- Founder and board member of Balsam – Lebanese Center for Palliative Care, an NGO providing home-based palliative care in Beirut
- Founding Director of the Palliative and Supportive Care Program at the American University of Beirut Medical Center’s Naef K. Basile Cancer Institute - the first hospital-based palliative care program in Lebanon.
Education
- Medical Degree, American University of Beirut, 1995
- Postgraduate Training, Family Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, 1995 -1998
- Board Certified, Family Medicine, American Board of Family Medicine, 1998 - Present
- Fellowship, Maternal Child Health, West Suburban Hospital, Oak Park, IL 1998-2000
- Masters in Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 2000
- International Visiting Scholar Program, San Diego Hospice, 2010
- Board Certified, Hospice and Palliative Medicine, American Board of Hospice and Palliative Medicine
- Palliative Care Education and Practice (PCEP Course), Harvard Medical School, 2013- 2014
Publications (relevant to palliative care)
- Chidiac C, El Zakhem A, Osman H, Yamout R. Recommendations to improved palliative care provision for marginalized populations: Summary of a roundtable discussion. Journal of Palliative Medicine. 2021; 20(20).
- Salem R, El Zakhem A, Gharamti A, Tfayli A, Osman H*. Palliative care via telemedicine: A qualitative study of caregiver and provider perceptions. Journal of Palliative Medicine 2020.
- Osman H, Shrestha S, Temin S, Ali ZV, Corvera RA, Ddungu HD, De Lima L, Del Pilar Estevez-Diz M, Ferris FD, Gafer N, Gupta HK, Horton S, Jacob G, Jia R, Lu FL, Mosoiu D, Puchalski C, Seigel C, Soyannwo O, Cleary JF. Palliative care in the global setting: American Society of Clinical Oncology Resource-Stratified Practice Guideline. Journal of Global Oncology. 2018 Jul;(4):1-24.
- Osman H, Rihan A, Garralda E, Rhee JY, Pons JJ, De Lima L, Tfaily A Centeno C. Atlas of Palliative Care in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. Houston: IAHPC Press: 2017.
- Osman H, El Jurdi K, Sabra R, Arawi T. Respecting patient choices: Using the “Go Wish” cards as a teaching tool. BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care 2017;0:1-4.
- Osman H, Ramia JA. Assessing physicians’ perceptions of home based palliative care services in the Beirut area. BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care 2015;5 (suppl 1): A28.
- Osman H, Abboud M, El Zein L, Ghosn H, Hanna J, Kanazi G. Setting standards for practice for palliative care in Lebanon: Recommendations of the Subcommittee on Practice - National Committee for Pain Control and Palliative Care. Lebanese Medical Journal 2013; 61(4): 199-203.
- Osman H,Batlouni L. Home Health Care in Lebanon. Human and Health. 2013;22:16- 18.
- Osman H. Developing palliative care in Lebanon: Obstacles and opportunities. J Med Liban 2015;63(1): 42-46.
- Murray S, Osman H. Primary Palliative Care: the potential of primary care physicians as providers of palliative care in the community in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal 2012;18(2):178-183.