(
HMC to revalidate doctors’ qualifications
Al-Kuwari and other dignitaries at the signing event.
21st May 2013
The Hamad Medical Corporation will soon begin to revalidate the qualifications, credentials and practices of all its consultant doctors including physcians at the Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC), it was announced yesterday.
The Corporation has entered into an agreement with Medical Validation Ireland (MVIrl), a consortium of renowned international certifying authorities, which began a three-day visit to Doha earlier in the week.
As part of the agreement, MVIrl will establish a dedicated project office at HMC.
“Revalidation is the periodic review of a doctor’s skills and medical practices to ensure they remain current and accurate,” HMC managing director Hanan al-Kuwari said adding: “The revalidation system is widely used in international best practice and is designed to reinforce the trust patients have in their doctor. It is common practice in the US and started last year in the UK. We have partnered with Medical Valuation Ireland to assist us in setting up the process and independently reviewing our doctors’ performance.”
The MVIrl consortium is led by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) and also includes affiliated faculties of Dentistry and Radiologists, the College of Anesthetists of Ireland, the College of Psychiatry of Ireland, the Irish College of General Practitioners and the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland.
The agreement was formally signed here in February by al-Kuwari and RCSI chief executive officer professor Cathal Kelly.
Last month, HMC wrote to all its medical and dental consultants to announce the launch of the programme, which formally began this week with a series of meetings and presentations from both sides.
MVIrl will work with HMC’s medical leadership and the Medical Staff Office, as well as with the PHCC, to complete a peer review of the credentials of every consultant.
Once a consultant has had their credentials revalidated, against the criteria used to practice in Ireland, they will receive a certificate and the validation will be effective for five years, during which time they are expected to be engaged in Maintenance of Certification/Validation Programme.
HMC’s Medical Education director Dr Abdullatif al-Khal said: “Thanks to the admirable work of our consultants, HMC has been ranked as one of the best health systems in the region. We cannot afford to stand still, however, so in order to maintain our track record of excellence, we have launched a process of revalidating the credentials of all of our consultant doctors.”
HMC’s chief of Medical, Academic and Research Affairs professor Mike Richmond said: “HMC is transforming from a medical care delivery system into a highly dynamic Academic Health System with significant research and education components. Over time, this agreement will help ensure that all our consultants meet a single, unified high standard, enabling the Corporation to deliver the safest, most effective care to all our patients.”
PHCC managing director Dr Mariam Abdul Malik underlined the importance of partnerships to deliver a consistent experience for patients saying: “We need to build a system with the highest quality and the best international standards as this will enhance the standards of our clinical practitioners.”
Speaking earlier at the signing ceremony, MVIrl’s director Eunan Friel said: “We are delighted to have been selected to share our international expertise with HMC and the PHCC. By reviewing and benchmarking their consultants, this revalidation programme will provide further reassurance to patients about the quality of care they can expect to receive from the Corp and the PHCC. It will also enable both organisations to recognise excellence and identify appropriate development opportunities for their consultants.”
MVIrl’s Client Liaison officer Paul Nolan added: “The team is a very excited to be starting work here in Doha. We’re looking forward to an intensive few days as we start the process of presenting the programme to the consultants and getting their feedback.”
This week’s introductory meeting was attended by more than 100 senior leaders from HMC, including hospital CEOs, clinical leaders, departmental chairs, and chiefs of Medical Staff as well as a 25 high level delegation of clinical leaders from MV Ireland.
It was followed by a series of visits to clinical departmental by MVIrl to gather information and to interact with the consultants involved in the programme and answer their questions.