Iman Hakim

Dean

Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health

University of Arizona

By Sovay Hansen

For Iman Hakim, keeping her word is what it means to be a good leader. 

As dean of the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health at the University of Arizona, Hakim has been proudly building the trust of her college – faculty, staff, and students – for the 18 years she’s held her position. 

The longest-serving dean currently at UA, Hakim attributes her leadership success to creating a dynamic vision for the college and sticking to her word in the process. “If I say I will do it, then I will do it. They trust that it will happen,” she said. 

Hakim is not only the Mel & Enid Zuckerman Endowed Chair in Public Health, she is also the founding director of the Global Health Institute at the UA, and she is internationally known for her research in bioactive food compounds in preventing chronic disease. Hakim was recently selected as a member of the Qatar University Health’s International Advisory Committee and the international advisory board for the College of Health Sciences, Abu Dhabi University, UAE.

After finishing her medical degree and pediatric residency at Cairo University in Egypt, Hakim joined a research center and started working for a rural development program, training residents to provide healthcare in villages near Cairo. 

With a doctorate in child health and nutrition and a master’s degree in public health, Hakim emphasizes how important it is to truly listen to patients’ beliefs and experiences, even if, at first, they make little scientific sense. 

Presented with a patient who has an unscientific view about why they are experiencing something, Hakim seeks to understand and communicates to the patient that “what you see is true, but it is because of XYZ scientific reason.” 

Rather than correcting patients about their own health, Hakim’s approach is to encourage them to trust what they are experiencing, but to revise their understanding of the cause—or how to fix it—based on science. 

“It is crucial to try to make sense of their observation and to line it up with the science in a way that they can understand,” she said.

It’s easy to see how Hakim’s commitment to the patient’s voice translates well into being a trusted leader. 

Lorraine Varela, special assistant to the dean, has worked with Hakim for 18 years and has witnessed the qualities that set her apart from other leaders.

“She balances strategic intellect with rare compassion and possesses a remarkable talent for uniting people toward a common vision,” said Varela.