Professor Machaca presents Dr Al Haj with her award.
DOHA: Four outstanding Qatari research trainees were given graduation awards by Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar (WCMC-Q) for the annual Biomedical Research Training Programme on Saturday.
Dr Najla Al Haj, Consultant Clinical Psychiatrist at Hamad Medical Corporation, Shaikha Al Qahtani, Noor Faisal and Fatima Fakhroo were honoured for their achievements.
WCMC-Q Associate Dean for Research, Professor Khaled Machaca, presented them with certificates.
“The programme is not aimed to train a large number of trainees, the programme’s goal is to train a small number of well-qualified trainees who will fit well into a research environment.
“The other very important goal of the programme is to use it as a pipeline to be able to hire Qatari nationals within our research department who will stay with us for the long term,” said Professor Machaca.
“The reason for the success of this programme is largely due to the high quality of the candidates and the trainees who spend six months with us.
“It takes people who are interested in biomedical research no matter how small it is, and exposes them to a broad spectrum of what research is all about — from being in the lab to administering research, to doing basic and clinical research and learn about what compliance is, what is involved in grants and contracts and how to manage them.
“This is an opportunity for young scientists to find their niche or that particular area of research they are comfortable in and hopefully to build a career based on that,” Professor Machaca said.
The programme is open to talented Qatari Nationals from all walks of science who as a minimum are recent university graduates interested in pursuing careers in biomedical research-related fields.
It is a six-month training programme from January to July that offers a stimulating experience to participants who seek to be actively involved in biomedical research projects in a challenging and knowledge-rewarding environment.
The training programme consists of aspects of research, including laboratory training, writing and communication for research, biostatistics, clinical research, and research administration.
The Peninsula
