Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) inaugurated on Tuesday the Doha International Centre for Strategy and Leadership in Transplantation.
The ceremony also honoured 139 organ donors and patients, including the families of 18 deceased donors.
HMC chief medical officer Dr Abdulla al-Ansari said that Qatar’s organ donation and transplantation programmes have changed the lives of thousands.
“We are proud to be adding another milestone to our programmes,” he said. “We are establishing the Doha International Centre for Strategy and Leadership in Transplantation.”
“Through this body we will be supporting the development of transplant programmes globally – sharing our knowledge and our experience in Qatar with other countries,” the official added. “The centre is guided by our own unwavering principles of equity and fairness and an eminent international advisory board of experts has also been engaged to support its work.”
HMC's deputy chief medical officer for clinical affairs and director of Qatar Centre for Organ Transplantation, Dr Yousef al-Maslamani, said that Qatar’s Organ Transplant Programme offers kidney, liver and lung transplant surgeries.
“The HMC is one of the most comprehensive transplant centres in the region, and Qatar is recognised as a regional leader in both organ donation and transplantation,” he said. “Respect for human rights, autonomy and equity made Qatar a model of ethical and best clinical practice that is much-admired by the international transplant community.”
“We have been able to build this on the sustained success of the Doha Donation Accord that was achieved through innovative thinking, ethical values, widespread community acceptance and robust governmental support,” Dr al- Maslamani added. “Now it is our turn to help other countries through the Doha International Centre for Strategy and Leadership in Transplantation.”
The director of the Qatar Organ Donation Centre and Transplantation Society Councillor for the Middle east, West and Central Asia, Dr Riadh Fadhil, said that the Doha International Centre for Strategy and Leadership in Transplantation was established to develop a plan of action to address global challenges collaborative efforts with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and key international stakeholders.
The Medal of Altruism was presented to living donors and the families of deceased donors.
The event also saw acknowledgement of Qatari kidney transplant recipients who chose to have their transplant surgery in Qatar rather than going abroad for treatment.
As of 2024, around one-quarter of Qatar’s adult population, from 131 nationalities, are registered organ donors on a single organ transplant waiting list that ensures fair access to transplant services for all nationalities.
Officials at the launch ceremony of Doha International Centre for Strategy and Leadership in Transplantation.
