Saleema Karim, Ph.D., has been named interim chair of the Department of Health Administration at the Virginia Commonwealth University College of Health Professions, effective July 1.

Karim joined VCU in 2021, and is an associate professor. She will fulfill the interim chair role as Paula Song, Ph.D., Richard M. Bracken chair and professor in Health Administration, was appointed interim dean of the College.

“I am grateful to Saleema for her ongoing leadership among students, faculty and staff,” said Song. “She is a remarkable scholar and respected colleague whose dedication and commitment will continue to elevate the Department of Health Administration.”

Karim has taught classes on operations management and healthcare financial management to MHA and MBA students. She has received several department and college awards for her teaching and has been recognized for her innovative and creative activities in the classroom.  She enjoys creating activities for the classroom that engage students in the course material.

Her research focuses on hospital financial sustainability, disparities, geographic variation and HVBP and HRRP reimbursement.  She is currently funded through the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth at HRSA to evaluate the effect of telehealth adoption on rural and urban hospital financial performance.  She has published in the Journal of Rural Health, Medical Care Research and Review and the Journal of Health Care Management.

Since coming to VCU, Karim has served as interim MSHA program director. She also is leading the Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME) self-study for Health Administration, and she has served on numerous department and College-wide committees.

Prior to joining VCU, Karim was a faculty member in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. She completed her Ph.D. at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a focus on healthcare financial management. Her dissertation focused on the relationship of the Magnet Recognition designation on hospital financial performance.