Alumni Inspiration

Success Stories


First WCM-Q alum to join Aspetar as orthopedic surgeon specialized in sport medicine

Dr. Khalid Al-Khelaifi, who graduated in 2008, became the first WCM-Q alumnus to join Aspetar as an orthopedic surgeon specialized in sports medicine when he took up his new post in 2018. Dr. Al-Khelaifi, who also specializes in knee and shoulder arthroscopy and reconstructive surgery, and in upper and lower extremity general trauma, completed his residency training in orthopedic surgery at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. At McGill, Dr. Al-Khelaifi was one of the chief residents in the orthopedic surgery department and a member of the Resident Teaching Committee. He completed a fellowship in sports orthopedics at Henry Ford Hospital (Wayne State University), in Detroit, Michigan, USA.

WCM-Q alumna awarded trustee post at the American Psychiatric Association

Dr. Rana Elmaghraby, a 2016 WCM-Q graduate, has been elected as resident-fellow trustee-elect of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) following a national vote. In her new role and continuing as a second-year psychiatry resident at the University of Minnesota, she aims to, “…serve as the voice of resident and fellow psychiatrists, particularly in the realm of trainee wellbeing, and to serve as an advocate for people living with mental illness.”

Prestigious research award for WCM-Q alumnus

2014 WCM-Q graduate, Dr. Emad Mansoor has won the prestigious Fellows-in-Training Award at the meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology, held at the World Congress of Gastroenterology event in Orlando, Florida. He has been recognized for his research which found that patients with eosinophilic esophagitis, a debilitating autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation of the esophagus, are nine times more likely to have celiac disease than the general public.

Making medicine the perfect fit

Class of 2018 Qatari graduate, Dr. Faten Aqeel may only have been awarded her residency position in internal medicine in the past year, but her relationship with WCM-Q and the medical field began long before her graduation. In 2011, Aqeel was named winner of Healing Hands, an annual competition that aims to inspire Qatari high school students to follow a career in medicine.

WCM-Q alumnus making headlines in hematology

During the course of 2012, Dr. Al-Khafaji was selected for the prestigious American Society of Hematology’s 2012 Trainee Research Award. The purpose of the award is to expose trainees to hematology and research early in their careers with the hope of inspiring them to pursue hematology in their future research training.

WCM-Q’s first alumnus turned faculty member

Dr. Ostrovskiy, who is originally from St. Petersburg, Russia, completed his MD degree at WCM-Q back in 2011 before securing a place in a highly sought-after emergency medicine residency program at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. Having completed his residency, Dr. Ostrovskiy returned to Doha in 2016 to become WCM-Q’s new assistant professor of emergency medicine. He was the first WCM-Q student to return to the university as a member of faculty.

Alumnus scoops Intern of the Year award

Class of 2015 graduate Dr. Ayman Al-Jurdi was named Intern of the Year on his internal medicine residency program at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Dr. Al-Jurdi was awarded the prize in recognition of his knowledge, mastery of the program material, and his dedication to his patients and the medical students he teaches. Impressively, he was chosen for the award from a cohort of approximately 50 residents.

WCM-Q alumnus discusses advances in cancer care

WCM-Q alumnus Dr. Muhamed Baljević returned to the college to discuss his research in multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer, for the latest installment of WCM-Q’s Grand Rounds. Dr. Baljević, who is originally from Bosnia and Herzegovina, was offered an Emiri scholarship in 2001 to come to Doha and finish high school at Qatar Academy, a member of Qatar Foundation.

Humanism honor for WCMC-Q alumna

WCM-Q alumna Dr. Haya Ahram has been awarded a prestigious prize in recognition of her commitment to teaching and her compassionate treatment of patients and their families, students and colleagues. Class of 2013 graduate Dr. Ahram, who serves as a family medicine doctor in New York, competed her residency in family medicine at St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center, University of Connecticut, where she received the Arnold P. Gold Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Award and was inducted as a member of the Gold Humanism Honor Society.

A global quest for knowledge

WCM-Q alumna Dr. Amila Husic returned to Bosnia-Herzegovina in 2014 to work at University Hospital in Sarajevo, it marked the completion of an arduous yet inspiring 15-year odyssey across the globe in pursuit of the skills and knowledge required to practice medicine. Amila, who joined WCMC-Q in 2002, the college’s first year of operations, left her home and family aged just 15 to take up a scholarship at the prestigious King Henry VIII School in Coventry, England.

WCM-Q alumnus launches debut novel

Class of 2010 alumnus Dr. Anas Abou-Ismael has published his first novel, entitled A Melody of Tears: Sorrows of Syria. Written over two years, the book tells the story of Waleed and Sireen, a young Syrian couple whose burgeoning love for one another is threatened by the eruption of the country’s devastating civil war.

Award brace for WCM-Q alumna

Dr. Mahrukh S Rizvi, a 2011 WCMC-Q graduate, has received the "Star Research Achievement Award" for two years in a row at the 47th and 48th international annual meeting of the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM). The SCCM Critical Care Congress is the largest critical care event that brings together the critical care community to collaborate and explore evidence-based developments in critical care medicine.