Dean's Blog

Graduation in Qatar

I recently returned from Qatar, where I attended the graduation of WCMC-Q's Class of 2013. There was nearly a full day of festivities. Early in the afternoon, WCMC-Q held a ceremony for its 35 new doctors, and later that evening, the Qatar Foundation celebrated with a convocation for the 437 graduates of all of the universities located in Education City. Then, at the end of May, WCMC-Q's newly minted physicians will be feted once more, when they travel to New York to attend Commencement with our graduates here.

This year's class, the sixth to graduate from our branch in Qatar, has a lot to look forward to. Next year, 29 of them will begin residencies in the US. Eight will be training at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. Two matched to the Hamad Medical Corporation, Qatar's state-run health care provider and an affiliate of WCMC-Q, while others will be pursuing research fellowships in Qatar.

Among this year's class is Iqbal el Assaad, who at the age of 20 is the youngest doctor in Qatar and among the youngest in the world. She was able to read a journal in English and Arabic at the age of 5, skipped several grades, and learned algebra just by sitting near her older siblings while they were doing their homework. Amazingly, she graduated from high school at the age of 12. She will start residency training at the Cleveland Clinic and wants to become a pediatric cardiologist, serving Palestinian refugees in Lebanon.

When I spoke to our newest alumni at the WCMC-Q graduation ceremony, I left them with an Arabic proverb to consider as they embark on their medical careers: He who has health, has hope. And he who has hope, has everything.

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