A summer of research for WCMC-Q’s Healing Hands essay winners Three Qatari high school students will be jetting off to New York on summer research scholarships after winning Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar’s (WCMC-Q) annual Healing Hands essay contest. The competition is now in its sixth year and gives local high school students the chance to spend time in the research laboratory of Dr. Ronald G. Crystal in Weill Cornell Medical College in New York. This year’s essay theme was Caring Without Borders with the question asking the entrants to write about how they would ensure the health of the victims of an imagined humanitarian crisis. The essays were judged by a panel of experts from WCMC-Q and the eventual winners chosen. These were Kholoud Essa Abu-Holayqah of Al Bayan Education Complex for Girls, Naima Abdulrahman Alobaidli from Debakey High School for Health Professionals at Qatar, and Salah Majid Mahmoud from Qatar Academy. Dr. Javaid Sheikh, Dean of WCMC-Q, said the Healing Hands competition was a chance for the college to get young people excited about medicine and interested in studying at WCMC-Q. He said: “This is the opportunity of a lifetime for these three winners. To be so young yet to be welcomed into a professional research laboratory is an experience they will never forget. Under the care of Dr. Crystal, they will learn exactly what the research process involves, the care and precision needed, and the dedication of the researchers. “It will be an unforgettable intellectual journey for them.” Noha Saleh, Director of Student Recruitment, said the Healing Hands contest is a wonderful way to introduce potential students to WCMC-Q. She said that as part of its community outreach program, WCMC-Q encourages Qatari nationals who are considering a career in medicine to learn more about WCMC-Q and take an active interest in college life and healthcare issues. For Naima Abdulrahman Alobaidli the prize means she can experience the career she hopes to one day pursue.
She said: “I’m looking forward to learning more about the medical field. I’m extremely interested in a career in medicine and I would just like to thank everyone.” Kholoud Essa Abu-Holayqah said she hoped to study at WCMC-Q and thought that being chosen as one of the three winners would now help her application. She added: “I’m interested in becoming a surgeon in later life but I never thought I would win.” Finally, 15-year-old Salah Majid Mahmoud has his father to thank for bringing the essay contest to his attention. Salah said: “My dad brought me the application papers and I thought it was a really good question. Medicine is important to me and I’d like to be a physician when I grow up. I am proud of my country and I’d like to help it by being a doctor.” The three winners and their nominated guardians will now spend two weeks in New York, hosted by Dr. Crystal, the Chairman of Genetic Medicine at WCMC. Everyone who entered the Healing Hands contest also received a certificate of appreciation and three received an honorable mention – Dana Mohammed Alyafei of Al Kawthar Secondary School for Girls; Fahad Saad Al-Suwaidi, of Nasser Al Atteya Secondary Independent School for Boys; and Sarah Jassim Al-Kuwari, from Debakey High School for Health Professionals at Qatar. The other students were: Hajer Mahmoud Al-Mulla, of Al Bayan Educational Complex for Girls; Asmma Salem Al-Romole, of Umm Ayman Secondary School for Girls; Maryam Abdulla Buhmaid, of The International School of Choueifat – Doha, Salman Khalid Al-Hail of Newton International School; Shaikha Nasser Al-Naimi, of Al Bayan Educational Complex for Girls; Ohoud Khalifa Al-Suwaidi of Umm Ayman Secondary School for Girls; Sara Ali Al-Quradaghi, from Al Bayan Educational Complex for Girls; and Maryam Abdullha H M-Al-Nameh The International School of Choueifat – Doha. - ILQ News -

Follow us on our social media channels: @ILQlive @ILQlive @ILoveQtr ILoveQatar