The Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) has implemented a joint educational initiative with the University of Doha for Science and Technology (UDST), targeting fourth-year Dental Hygiene students.
Dr Najat Alyafei, the manager of Oral Health Promotion and Prevention at the PHCC, said that the initiative aims to support health education and strengthen national capacity in preventative care and was organised by the Oral Health Promotion and Prevention Department in the Preventative Health Directorate in collaboration with the Academic Affairs Department within the PHCC’s Workforce Training and Development Directorate.
The collaboration provided fourth-year Dental Hygiene students with a structured observership experience within the Asnani School Oral Health Programme, one of the PHCC’s flagship national preventative initiatives delivering oral health promotion services across public schools in Qatar.
A total of 16 senior dental hygiene students participated in the observership, receiving structured exposure to Qatar’s school-based preventive oral health delivery model.
"The initiative aims to bridge academic education with real-world healthcare practice by exposing students to community-based preventive oral health delivery, multidisciplinary teamwork, and professional health communication within authentic school environments," Dr Alyafei said.
The experience also highlighted the importance of culturally and linguistically appropriate health education materials when delivering preventive messages within Arabic governmental school settings.
Under the supervision and mentorship of PHCC clinical teams, students gained practical insight into public health dentistry and preventive care models, strengthening their professional readiness and understanding of community health engagement.
"We affirm that academic partnerships of this nature represent a fundamental pillar in developing national healthcare competencies and supporting the sustainability of prevention and health promotion services, in alignment with Qatar’s healthcare sector strategy and the PHCC’s vision of investing in the future health workforce,” Dr Alyafei said.