Manama: Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) needs around 130 doctors annually to fill in the current capacities, a senior official has said.
For this year, 140 doctors from 26 countries have been selected for 19 specialisation programmes at HMC’s Department of Medical Education(MED).
“HMC requires 120 to 130 new doctors every year,” Dr Abdul Lateef Al Khal, Director, Department of Medical Education, HMC, said.
“The number of Qatari graduates is not enough and cannot meet the necessary numbers, though the number of citizens at Weill Cornell Medical College- Qatar is increasing," Al Khal said. "At least 25 percent of the graduates are working here. We are also planning on incentives to WCMC-Q graduates to attract them,” he said, quoted by Qatari daily The Peninsula.
HMC currently has 500 doctors undergoing various medical education programmes and 100 have graduated.
According to officials, 450 physicians had applied for the training programmes beginning this academic year and 160 of them were called. The tests and interview was based on a Canadian system which focused on the communication skill, medical abilities and medical ethics.
The selected doctors were divided into 19 specialisations programmes in chronicle disease, general surgery, obstetric and gynecology, emergency medicine, family medicine and brain surgery, the daily said.
“We have advanced much in medical education since it was launched six years ago. Our vision is to offer the highest quality education and training that will serve the needs of patients through the advancement of medicine in Qatar,” he said.
“HMC has all the facilities to meet the requirments of the doctors. Medical education programmes are selected based on the most progressive and advanced in the field. In surgery for instance, the key focus is on laparoscopic and robotic surgeries,” he said.
