Qatar - Qatar educating Middle East healthcare professionals to showcase the Gulf state’s healthcare

Article Type: News and views From: International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Volume 22, Issue 5

Keywords: Patient care, National Health Service, Qatar,Middle East

A consortium of top healthcare professionals dedicated to excellence in education, provision of quality patient care and research, participated in the purpose built Qatar pavilion at the Arab Health exhibition in Dubai.

Under the guidance of the National Health Authority of Qatar, the state agency overseeing the national health policy and regulations in Qatar, the consortium presented Qatar’s industry-leading solutions to three major health challenges.

These include premature death through injury and infant mortality;preventable long-term conditions aggravated by genetic factors such as diabetes;and lifestyle diseases that reduce life expectancy and quality of life, such as obesity and cardiovascular disease.

Making that vision a reality, is key participant Hamad Medical Corporation(HMC), which has nearly 20,000 employees covering medical, paramedical,administrative and support services throughout five specialised hospitals offering tertiary healthcare.

“HMC has already set the standard for Middle East healthcare. We were the first public medical centre in the region to attain international accreditation from the Joint Commission International (JCI) for all of our healthcare centres and hospitals”, said Mohamad Al Noimi, director of marketing and PR.

Caring for almost 90 per cent of Qatar’s population, HMC has educational links with Cornell University, the University of Heidelberg Clinics in Germany,which help to support the operations at Al Amal Hospital which specialises in oncology and cancer treatment. The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, USA,provides technical services and support for HMC’s accident and emergency services.

However, underscoring the lead that Qatar has taken regionally is clearly illustrated by the joint venture between Cornell University a global pioneer of university level co-education and the Qatar Foundation, which resulted in the first medical school in Qatar – Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar(WCMC-Q).

WCMC-Q offers an integrated programme of pre-medical and medical studies leading to the Cornell University MD degree. It is the first time that an American university has offered its MD degree overseas and teaching is by Cornell and Weill Cornell faculty, including physicians from HMC who hold Weill Cornell appointments.

Michael Vertigans Director of Public Affairs at WCMC-Q, commented, “Enrolment has grown rapidly from 25 first year pre-medical students in 2002 to over 240 students from 30 different countries in 2008. Qatar and the rest of the region can benefit from this, with home-grown graduates inspiring the next generation of Arab and regionally-based healthcare professionals”.

Other participants include Aspetar the region’s first specialised orthopaedic and sports medicine hospital. This unique facility attracts some of the best athletes in the world not only to address sporting injuries, but also for consultation about optimising fitness levels, nutrition, psychology and training schedules.

Completing the impressive line-up were Qatar Science and Technology Park,University of Calgary, North Atlantic University and Qatar University.

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