New doctors-to-be don white coats at WCMC-Q ceremony

The next generation of hopeful young doctors entering the 2012 medical class took their first steps into the world of medicine on Thursday at the 9^th annual White Coat Ceremony at the Hamad Bin Khalifa University Student Center.

There were 39 students participating in the ceremony, considered to be a traditional rite of passage where the new doctors-in-training first put on the symbolic emblem of their new roles as doctors – their white coats.

Dr. Ravinder Mamtani, WCMC-Q’s Associate Dean for Admissions and Student Affairs, presented the ceremony. The keynote speakers were Dr. Javaid Sheikh, Dean of WCMC-Q, and Dr. William F. Owen, CEO of Sidra Medical and Research Center, who congratulated the medical students, reflected on his medical career, and encouraged them to proceed with their journey in medicine after wearing the white coat.

Dr. Javaid I. Sheikh said: “The white coat is a universal symbol of science and the art of healing. As the students don this mantle of the medical profession, they are demonstrating their lifelong commitment to the practice of medicine: to be excellent in science, to be compassionate, and to maintain the honor and dignity of the profession.”

All but two of the entering students are graduates of the WCMC-Q Pre-medical Program and five are from Qatar. In his welcome address, Dean Sheikh lauded the many accomplishments of the students during their premedical years, such as their participation in the local Qatar Foundation community through activities such as LeaderShape and the Residence Life committees. Some have volunteered for the Global Health Club while many of them worked on biomedical research projects conducted through Qatar Foundation’s Undergraduate Research Experience Program and the Summer Student Research Program at the Cornell University campus in Ithaca, New York.

The White Coat ceremony event was the culmination of three days of orientation for the new medical students. The event was attended by student’s families and friends as well as WCMC-Q faculty and administrators and was followed by a reception.

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