Dr Salih al-Marri addresses students at the inaugural Crest Ceremony. Right: Members of the first class of the Patient Education programme receive their School of Health Sciences Crests during the ceremony.

 

The School of Health Sciences (SHS) at College of the North Atlantic - Qatar (CNA-Q) recognised 170 of its students at the inaugural Crest Ceremony this week.

The ceremony was hosted to welcome students to the CNA-Q Health Sciences family and highlight the special choice each student has made in choosing a career in the healthcare industry.

Dr Salih al-Marri, assistant secretary-general for medical affairs, Supreme Council of Health, stressed the importance of trained healthcare practitioners to the future of the State.

“The government of Qatar is looking at you as a valuable asset in the execution of Qatar National Vision 2030, where Qatar commits to a healthy population - both physically and mentally - through the provision of a comprehensive world-class healthcare system,” he said.

The crest recipients are all current students in one of CNA-Q’s eight Health Sciences programmes: Dental Assistant – Level II, Dental Hygiene, Environmental Health Science, Medical Radiography Technology, Paramedicine, Patient Education, Pharmacy Technician and Respiratory Therapy.

Dr Ken MacLeod, president of CNA-Q, told the students that the path they have chosen is to use their life to help others. “For that, you should be congratulated and celebrated.”

“The first day of fall semester 2013, the paramedic instructors had a session in which they shared their experiences and why they chose to become paramedics,” recalled Mohamed Hamza, a first-year Paramedicine student. “It was indeed motivating.”

The newly designed CNA-Q SHS Crest was presented to students from industry and college representatives of their individual programmes. CNA-Q has a close relationship with local industry, ensuring that the programmes provide the most relevant, up-to-date training for students. To highlight this relationship, the ceremony participants represented the Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning; Hamad Medical Corporation’s Ambulance Service, Department of Dentistry and Department of Radiology; Sidra Medical and Research Centre; and Qatar Petroleum.

Aisha al-Yousef, CNA-Q alumna and crest presenter on behalf of the Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning, spoke to the students about her experiences at CNA-Q and how the college prepared her for her career as a food safety inspector. “All my knowledge and training from CNA-Q has helped in all aspects of my work. I can say I needed every single piece of information that was given to me to carry out all the decisions that I make today.”