Class of 2010 steps into the medical profession

�This is your week, the week in which we celebrate your entrance into medical school.� With these words, Dean of WCMC-Q, Dr. Daniel R. Alonso, welcomed the Class of 2010 to Opening Exercises and the White Coat Ceremony, September 5.

It was an evening of mixed emotions for a class that has been particularly close. The happy celebration of success in entering the Medical Program and exuberant gathering of classmates after the long summer break were tinged with regret that some absent friends had not been successful in the admissions process.

Above all, class members looked forward to the future, with an inspirational keynote address from Dr. Ghalia Bint Mohammed Al-Thani, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the National Health Authority, and then the Hippocratic Oath read out to them by Dean Alonso.

Highlight of the evening was the ceremonial donning of white coats. With each year that passes, this symbolic welcoming of WCMC-Q�s newest doctors-in-training by their senior colleagues loses none of its power to move.

�It was an amazing event, very inspiring,� said class member Adam Khader. �After Dr. Ghalia�s speech and after Dr. Alonso read out the Oath, I felt the responsibility of wearing the white coat. Even though I accepted the responsibility a long time ago, I felt it all again as I put on the coat.�

Newcomer to the class, Naveed Anwar, commented: �It really set the frame for us as medical students, and what we should be thinking before we start classes.�

"True Heroes"
Delivering the keynote address, Dr. Ghalia Bint Mohammed Al-Thani began by asking the Class of 2010 to identify themselves so she could address them directly �as colleagues.�

In a wide-ranging speech, Dr. Ghalia highlighted the personal qualities they will need as physicians. She set their future commitment to patient care and education, research, and lifelong learning, in the context of the world in which they live and the health-care system in which they may practice. [Full Text]

To the development of sound intellectual skills, the physician must add exemplary ethical standards, a capacity for teamwork and for interaction with people from all walks of life, and a commitment to providing compassionate care.

�The Koran says that he who saves a single life, it is as if he has saved all of humanity. So you will save humanity several times over during your careers,� Dr. Ghalia said.

�Wherever there is suffering, you will waste no effort to relieve it and whenever a life is endangered you will protect it� You are the only absolute true heroes.�

She urged them to be motivated, rather than discouraged, by �moments of frustration� in the face of illnesses for which there is as yet no cure. �Such enigmas must become a major driving force for you to seek more knowledge and find the answers.�

Stepping over the threshold
The assembled students, family members, faculty and staff then listened intently as Dean Alonso read out the Hippocratic Oath. The Class will not actually recite it until their graduation in 2010, but this formal introduction to the values underlying the medical profession gave pause for further thought as they prepared to put on the coats.

Assisted by medical faculty, including WCMC-Q faculty at Hamad Medical Corporation, each class member proceeded to don the short white coat of the medical student, complete with the WCMC-Q patch on the left sleeve. With this gesture, they all stepped over the threshold and into their careers � now junior members of the medical profession.

�The White Coat Ceremony was a really big event, a stepping stone into my career,� said Sharon Mathew. �It was an emotional moment for me, and I found it highly rewarding after two years of hard work.�

She also took on board the keynote speaker�s advice to make a commitment to learning: �Dr. Ghalia talked about learning something new every day. I�m looking forward to it, because as long as you learn, you remain young in your mind, and you can relate to your patients and do your job well.�

The moment was one for all the class members to savor. As Dean Alonso urged them, before they left the lecture hall � �Now use your white coats very wisely!�

White Coat Ceremoney - Text of Keynote speaker Dr. Ghalia Al-Thani's address