Assoc. Prof. Maria Dimitrova Rohova-Yordanova PhD

Associate Professor Maria Rohova finished her secondary education at the First Language High School in Varna, where she studied English and German. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in Marketing and Management in 2001, and went on to complete a master's programme in Business Management at the University of Economics - Varna in 2015. Maria Rohova subsequently defended her doctoral thesis on Reducing Inequalities in Access to the Health System at the University of Economics - Varna in 2015, earning a Ph.D. in Social Management with a focus on Administration and Management.

In 2006, Maria Rohova earned a specialisation in Medical Informatics and Health Management at the Medical University of Varna. She has successfully completed various training courses and specialisations in the domains of healthcare management, healthcare financing, quality assurance, and patient safety, as well as in the migration of health professionals in Bulgaria, Switzerland, France, Germany, Austria, and Slovenia.

Maria Rohova initiated her academic career in 2002, upon winning a competitive selection process that secured her position as a full-time Assistant Professor within the Department of Healthcare Economics and Management at the Faculty of Public Health. From 2002 to 2016, she ascended through various roles, including Assistant Professor, Senior Assistant Professor, and Chief Assistant Professor. In 2016, she attained the status of full-time Associate Professor within the same department.

Maria Rohova conducts lectures and seminars in the undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in Healthcare Management, Pharmaceutical Management, Optometry, and Biomedical Technologies. She is also involved in the training of PhD students in Organisation and Management in Healthcare, alongside graduate students in Medical Informatics and Healthcare Management. She serves on the State Examination Board in Medical Informatics and Healthcare Management. Additionally, she lectures in professional training and postgraduate courses in Healthcare Management, Drug Policy and Market Access, and Dental Assisting.

Since 2002, Maria Rohova has been involved in over 30 national and international projects funded by the European Commission, World Health Organisation, UNICEF, World Bank, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Open Society Foundation, and others. She has coordinated two research projects funded by the 'Nauka' Fund at Medical University - Varna. Maria Rohova is also a member of the Health Systems Policy Monitor (HSPM) and COVID-19 Health Systems Response Monitor (HSRM) expert networks of the European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, and has worked with the Ministry of Health's working group on Hospital Care (2018). Additionally, she chaired the working group on Healthcare Reforms at the Advisory Council 'Partnership for Health' to the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Bulgaria from 2015 to 2018.

Maria Rohova is the author of over 100 scientific publications, as well as the author or co-author of seven books and one textbook. She has participated in numerous scientific conferences, congresses, and symposia both in Bulgaria and abroad. Her primary research areas encompass health system analysis and performance assessment, health reform, health inequalities and inequities, access to health services, vaccine hesitancy, mobility of health professionals, and health system resilience.

She served as an academic editor and editorial board member of PLOS ONE (2023-2025), as well as a member of the editorial board of the Health Economics and Management Journal (2018-2022). She also reviewed for the Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research and Health Care, Palgrave Communications, PLOS ONE, Frontiers of Public Health, Economic Alternatives, and Scripta Scientifica Salutis Publicae, among other publications.

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