Today's Edition
DAMASCUS (WAM)
"Jahiziyat Suriya" (The Syrian-Emirati Medical Readiness and Response Programme) has launched its third phase at the Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Field Hospital in the Damascus countryside, aiming to train and qualify 20,000 medical, emergency, technical and leadership personnel over five years.
The initiative is jointly undertaken by the Syrian Ministry of Health and the UAE National Medical Readiness and Response Programme, "Jahiziyat".
The new phase focuses on expanding the scope of training, specialisations and target groups, while strengthening international academic and professional partnerships through an integrated national system combining academic education, clinical training, practical application, simulation and field-based training, tailored to the needs of the health, security and defence sectors and field medical teams.
The programmes cover emergency medicine, critical care, intensive care, disaster medicine, mass-casualty incidents, medical triage and major incident management, alongside pre-hospital medical care, trauma medicine, medical evacuation, burn care, severe trauma and response to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) incidents.
They also include health crisis management, command and control, operations and emergency centres, training national instructors and developing clinical training and simulation capabilities. The initiative incorporates mechanisms for theoretical and practical assessments of trainees, measuring the impact of training on individual and institutional performance, and linking training outcomes to field requirements and national response needs.
The five-year plan focuses on identifying training needs across sectors and specialities, developing curricula and professional pathways, implementing foundational, advanced and specialised training programmes, and strengthening international academic partnerships.
Dr. Mohammad Al-Khatib, Director General of the Syrian Board for Medical Specialities, said cooperation with the Jahiziyat Suriya programme contributes to developing medical training and qualification, enhancing professional competencies and advancing specialised medical education by updating training pathways, strengthening integration among healthcare institutions, academic bodies and training centres, and leveraging international expertise to design programmes that meet the actual needs of medical and emergency personnel.
He added that training national instructors and providing practical and simulation-based training opportunities help develop clinical and specialised skills, improve the quality of health services and strengthen institutions' capacity to respond to emergency and critical situations.
For his part, Dr. Adel Abdullah Al Shamri Al Ajmi, CEO of the Zayed Giving Initiative, head of the UAE Doctors initiative and leader of the UAE Medical Readiness and Response Programme, "Jahiziyat", said the third phase aims to build a sustainable national system for training medical and emergency personnel and strengthening healthcare institutions' readiness to respond to emergencies, crises and disasters.
He explained that the target of training 20,000 personnel over five years covers the health, security and defence sectors and field medical teams.
The initiative draws on academic and professional partnerships with more than ten universities, academic institutions and specialised training and accreditation centres across the United States, Canada, Europe, the United Kingdom and the UAE, aimed at transferring expertise, developing curricula and aligning programmes with international standards and practices.
These partnerships include the European Centre for Disaster Medicine (CEMEC) in the Republic of San Marino and the Middle East and North Africa Centre for Disaster Medicine, alongside cooperation with the Syrian Board for Medical Specialities to support specialised medical education and training and develop national professional and academic capacities.
