Profiling New Faculty
Dr. Diana Skaff
Dr. Diana Skaff has recently joined the FHS Nursing Program at the University of Balamand as a Senior Lecturer. As a proud alumna of the Faculty of Health Sciences, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing with distinction, she brings back to her alma mater over two decades of diverse experience in nursing education, research, trauma care, healthcare leadership, and program evaluation across Lebanon, the GCC, and internationally. Her academic journey has taken her from the bedside as a nurse and trauma educator, to advanced studies culminating in a Doctorate in Business Administration in Healthcare Management and Program Evaluation, for which she was honored with the Frank Dilley Award for Outstanding Doctoral Study. Returning to UOB in this new capacity is a meaningful milestone for her, as it allows her to give back to the institution that shaped her professional and academic path, and to contribute to preparing the next generation of nurses and leaders in healthcare.
Dr. Caroline Daccache
Dr. Caroline Daccache is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Balamand, Faculty of Health Sciences. She earned her first Master of Science in Biology from the Faculty of Sciences at the Lebanese University, with a focus on medically assisted procreation. In 2018, she pursued a second Master’s degree in Market Access for Health Products, at the Lebanese University. Her thesis, Comparative Review of Pharmaco-Economic Guidelines around the World and a Draft Proposal for Lebanon, laid the foundation for her subsequent work in advocating for the use of economic-evaluation evidence in informed decision-making. For over 20 years, Caroline contributed to the Research and Development Department at Mediphar Laboratories in Lebanon, serving as the Research and Development Manager. In 2025, Caroline earned her doctoral degree from Maastricht University in the Care and Public Health Research Institute (CAPHRI) within the Faculty of Health, Medicine, and Life Sciences in the Netherlands. Her doctoral research centered on developing a Lebanese health economic evaluation guideline. In parallel, she completed a Master’s degree in Ethics Applied to Health from the Lebanese University Faculty of Medical Sciences. Since 2023, Caroline has been teaching the Economics in Environment, Health, and Development at the undergraduate level, as well as Health Economics for Master’s students at the University of Balamand. She has also shared her experience in developing the Lebanese Health Economic Evaluation Guideline at different national and international events. She is actively engaged in national projects that aim to raise awareness of, and strengthen the implementation of, the Lebanese Health Economic Evaluation Guideline.
Samir El Kazzi
Samir El Kazzi an alumnus of the University of Balamand initiated his career at UOB as a graduate and research assistant at both faculties of Health Sciences and Medicine. He was then assigned as a quality control officer and a sales consultant at Al Marj Foodstuff Packing CO L.L.C. He holds M.Sc. in Clinical Microbiology and Immunology. His current position as an Assistant Instructor and a Research Lab supervisor at the University of Balamand gave him the opportunity to work on several research topics including microbiome in IBS patients and the virulence factors in bacterial blood infections.