A total of  45 graduates from  Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q) received their US-accredited MD degrees at a ceremony at Hamad Bin Khalifa University’s Student Centre yesterday in front of family, friends, faculty and staff.
The 45 new doctors join the ranks of 256 other alumni of WCM-Q and they will now go on to take up residencies at Hamad Medical Corporation and hospitals in the US.
Dr Javaid Sheikh, dean of WCM-Q, congratulated the new physicians and told them that the vision of Qatar Foundation of creating a virtuous circle, in which students are trained in Qatar and then return to practise medicine once their US residency training is complete, has now come to fruition.
Dr Sheikh said, “A career in medicine is one of the most rewarding jobs that anyone can undertake. You now have the knowledge to heal people, to offer succor in their darkest hours and to relieve suffering. During your residencies your knowledge will grow and you will begin to specialise, becoming experts in your respective fields. At the same time, I hope your compassion and empathy grows with it.”
Class valedictorian Dr Ali Khairat told the Class of 2017 : “If these six years at Cornell have taught me anything, it is that succeeding here takes true passion. So go forth, tighten your boot straps, do what you love and don’t take no for an answer. If life slams a door in your face: remember it’s a door, you can just open it again. And if it’s locked, rooms have windows, find one. And if you can’t find a window, break down a wall. Remember you’re carrying a toolbox. With this mentality, glory will find you, your task is not to seek it. It will merely come as an added benefit of doing what you love.”
The guest speaker Dr Amal al-Malki, founding dean of the College of Humanities & Social Sciences at Hamad Bin Khalifa University said: “It is wonderful to be here to see the members of WCM-Q’s Class of 2017 realise their dreams of becoming doctors, which I know they have worked so hard to achieve. At HBKU, we share the same passion for educational excellence, innovation and service to our communities as the young men and women who are graduating today.We will remain united by these values and, therefore, I have no doubt that the Class of 2017 will serve as wonderful ambassadors for Qatar Foundation and Qatar.”
Also watching the Class of 2017 receive their MD degrees and take the Hippocratic Oath was Dr Augustine Choi, dean of Weill Cornell Medicine in New York.
Dr Choi told the graduates, “This medical school has achieved so much in the sixteen years since it was established. You are truly making a difference not just in the Mena region, but around the globe. You are bringing better healthcare to Qatar and neighbouring countries. You are building a culture of biomedical research where one hadn’t existed before.”
The following are the meritorious students of the Class of 2017: Nawaf al-Taweel (Excellence in the Medicine, Patients and Society), Mohamed Zaahid Sheriff (Excellence in the Molecules, Genes and Cells Course; Excellence in the Host Defenses Course; Excellence in Internal Medicine), Ridin Balakrishnan (Excellence in the Brain and Mind Course; Excellence in Neurology), Aya El Jerbi (Excellence in the Brain and Mind Course; Excellence in Neurology), Diala Adnan Steitieh (Excellence in the Brain and Mind Course; Excellence in Neurology).
Lina Wael Irshaid (Academic Distinction, with Honours in Research Excellence in the Brain and Mind Course; Excellence in the Basis of Disease Course; Excellence in the Pre-Clinical Curriculum; Excellence in Internal Medicine; Excellence in Paediatrics; Excellence in Psychiatry; Excellence in Public Health; Excellence in Surgery; Excellence in the Clinical Curriculum; Biomedical Research Award; Leadership in Medicine Award; Outstanding Public Health and Community Medicine Research Award).
Anchalia Chandrakumaran (Academic Distinction), Afnan Albahri (Honours in Service, Outstanding Community Service Award; Class of 2008 Student Leadership Award), Sarah Elsoukkary  (Academic Distinction), Rebal Turjoman (Outstanding Community Service Award; Global and Public Health Award of Merit, Honours in Service), Hamza Munir Oglat (Academic Distinction, Excellence in the Molecules, Genes and Cells Course).
Ali Khairat (Excellence in Neurology), Khalid Walid al-Dasuqi (Academic Distinction, Honours in Research, Biomedical Research Award),
Mohamed Abubakar Shakir (Excellence in the Medicine, Patients and Society I Course; Excellence in the Medicine, Patients and Society II Course; Excellence in Public Health; Leadership in Medicine Award; Outstanding Community Service Award; Class of 2008 Student Leadership Award; Global and Public Health Award of Merit).
Ameneh Hossein Amini (The Good Physician Award), Jee Ah Rhee (Excellence in Obstetrics and Gynaecology), Josia Markus Schlogl (Academic Distinction), Tarek Barbar (Academic Distinction), Omar Abdulnaser Aljaziri (Excellence in the Medicine, Patients and Society), Ali Abdullah Al Jabri (Academic Distinction), Khalid Taha (Academic Distinction, Excellence in the Human Structure and Function Course; Excellence in Primary Care), Ahmed Khalid Almeer (Leadership in Medicine Award), Shruthi Suresh (Academic Distinction, Excellence in the Basis of Disease Course) and Pierre Bahij  Halteh  (Honours in Research, Biomedical Research Award).