Doha 5 March 2023: Hamad Medical Corporation’s (HMC) Itqan Clinical Simulation and Innovation Center was awarded the prestigious provisional accreditation in Teaching and Education by the internationally renowned Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSH). The provisional accreditation, granted by SSH’s Provisional Board of Review, is a validation of the developmental efforts of the Center and the simulation and education programs provided.
Dr. Abdullatif Al-Khal, Deputy Chief Medical Officer and Director of Hamad Medical Education Department at HMC, explained that this Center represents a strategic element and a cornerstone in HMC’s training and education mission designed to help transform clinical education and training in Qatar. “Simulation facilities play a pivotal role in providing practical hands-on training for clinicians in a safe environment. Enhancing the competencies of medical practitioners, including doctors and nurses, which gives them more confidence when treating human patients; it also improves patient safety and reduces health care costs,” said Dr. Al-Khal.
“Itqan is the first clinical simulation center in Qatar to receive such an accreditation. This is truly a major achievement that is a source of pride for HMC and an important milestone in Qatar’s strategy to develop a highly competent (clinical) workforce,” added Dr. Al-Khal.
“Our Center is purpose designed and built as a state-of-the-art facility that provides healthcare professionals and students from across Qatar with the opportunity to develop and refine their technical clinical skills as well as improve clinical judgment, safety culture, communication and teamwork skills,” explained Dr. Al-Khal. “Itqan is an Arabic word for perfection. At the Simulation Center, we always strive for high quality in our environment, our training, our outcomes, and in our future patient care.”
Located on the Hamad bin Khalifa Medical City campus, the Itqan Clinical Simulation and Innovation Center is one of the world’s largest simulation centers and the largest facility of its kind in the region. It is technically advanced and fully equipped with specialized simulation tools, such as high-fidelity mannequins, virtual reality simulators, fully equipped operating theaters, intensive care units, and patient care rooms. The Center has been an extremely important facility in providing upskilling and retraining of targeted staff during the past COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Kimberly Leighton, Executive Director, Itqan Clinical Simulation & Innovation Center, explained that the SSH’s provisional accreditation was a credit to executive leadership support, the magnificently designed hi-tec facility and a highly trained and dedicated team who provide simulation training and support.
“We embarked on this journey to gain SSH accreditation because it represents an external validation and recognition of the quality of the facility’s operations, its staff, and the training programs we offer to healthcare professionals. Accreditation supports our efforts to achieve and maintain best practices, improve standardization and achieve international benchmarks in quality; and most importantly, it strengthens our patient safety efforts,” said Dr. Leighton.
“This provisional accreditation status is granted to our Center for two years, with a view toward enabling us to develop further and be ready to apply for Full Accreditation Status in 2024,” added Dr. Leighton.
Established in 2004 by professionals using simulation for education, testing, and research in health care, SSH membership includes physicians, nurses, allied health and paramedical personnel, researchers, educators and developers from around the globe. SSH fosters the improvement and application of simulation–based modalities such as human patient simulators, virtual reality, standardized patients and task trainers
