Makassed Hospital celebrates training silver jubilee and graduation of 28 doctors

Makassed Charitable Islamic Hospital celebrated the silver jubilee of its medical specialty training program under the sponsorship of the Bank of Palestine, during which 28 specialist doctors graduated, the program's 25th wave of graduates over the same amount of years. The ceremony took place in the presence of the Head of the Presidential Office Dr. Hussein Al Araj, representing President Mahmoud Abbas, the Governor of the city of Jerusalem Mr. Adnan Al Husseini, the Governor of the cities of Ramallah and Al Bireh Dr. Laila Ghannam, and a number of current and former ministers, highly regarded personalities, presidents of universities and deans of their faculties of medicine, and many doctors and former graduates of the program.
In his welcoming speech, the Chairman of the Board of Maqassed Islamic Charitable Society, Dr. Arafat Hidmi, welcomed the President's representative to the graduation ceremony and the attendees, adding that "Makassed is proud of its twenty-five years of specialty training program, during which time the Hospital offered the nation a handful of the most qualified and efficient medical staff in nine certified disciplines: internal medicine, general surgery, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, orthopedics, anesthesiology, radiology, in addition to two new disciplines which were recently recognized by the Palestinian Medical Board, namely neurosurgery and heart surgery."
Dr. Hidmi said that "Makassed Hospital is considered a success story for this steadfast people", noting that "the successive administrative boards developed and improved the Hospital's services, turning it into the main referral hospital for the whole of Palestine, and an outstanding teaching hospital for medical students at Palestinian universities, particularly the University of Jerusalem".
In turn, speaking on behalf of his fellow graduates, Dr. Mohammed Mer'i said: "I thank the professors and doctors at Makassed Hospital who persevered in their task of educating and training us, and who bore the burden of work and education, and I would like to pay tribute to our distinguished Makassed, still standing tall despite the siege and occupation it faced since it was founded in the Holy land."
The ceremony, which was held on the stage of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society in Al Bireh, also honored the former directors of Makassed Hospital, along with a group of distinguished doctors, with current Makassed CEO Dr. Rafiq Husseini saying that the Palestinian people are now fully aware that the occupation of Jerusalem has become today more brutal and arbitrary, and that it is very difficult to achieve what we have aspired to all along and which is Jerusalem becoming the political capital of the Palestinian State, adding: "However, we hope that the Palestinian National Authority will adopt Jerusalem as the medical capital of Palestine, and the hospitals of Jerusalem will remain to have priority over referrals and the payment of dues."
Among the honorees were Dr. Riad Za'noun, the first Minister of Health in the Palestinian government, the late Dr. Mustafa Abdel Shafi, one of the first chairmen of the Department of Surgery at Makassed, Dr. Sami Khoury, one of the leading surgeons in Palestine, and a number of doctors from the first generation of specialists at Makassed Hospital, including Dr. Amin Al Khatib (Community leader), Dr. Nabih Muammar (first Director), Dr. Darwish Nazzal (Director and prominent cardiologist), Dr. Tawfiq Shakshir (Director and prominent surgeon), Dr. Emile Jarjou'i (MP and prominent pediatrician, Dr. Amin Majaj ( Director and ex-Jordanian Health Minister) Dr. Eric Fosse chairman of NORWAC (Norwegian NGO that supported medical training at Makassed Hospital) in addition to honoring the late Faisal Husseini (leader and head of PLO HQ in Jerusalem Orient House), and Zaki Al Ghoul, the deposed mayor of East Jerusalem.
Dr. Husseini went on to present Mr. Hashim Shawa, the Chairman of Bank of Palestine, which is sponsoring the event, with a shield of honor. Mr. Shawa, in turn, praised the leading role of Makassed Hospital since its inception, and what this Jerusalemite edifice represents in terms of steadfastness and defiance in the Holy City, pointing out the blessed efforts of the Hospital's doctors and Makassed's leading medical achievements nationwide. He also called upon all concerned bodies to provide more support to Makassed Hospital and its staff in order to ensure the Hospital's continuity and to bridge the fiscal deficit it has been suffering from in recent years.
For his part, the medical director and program coordinator for the training of doctors, Dr. Bassam Abu Libdeh, spoke of the history of the specialty training program, which began in 1988, adding that "the program graduated its first wave in 1990, and I was one of those graduates majoring in Pediatrics, a specialization recognized by the Jordanian Medical Board, along with four other disciplines. When the Palestinian National Authority was established, the Palestinian Medical Board went on to certify four new specializations." Dr. Abu Libdeh noted that 329 specialist doctors have graduated from the program over twenty-five years, and they are all distinguished and highly competent, working at hospitals all around the nation, with some of them holding top positions.
The ceremony included the presentation of a short film titled (Makassed Hospital in Jerusalem: Continuous Development amid Constant Challenges), recounting the Hospital's stories of success and resilience since its inception and until today, and speaking of the heavy burden laid on Makassed's shoulders in order to provide the best medical services to the sick and wounded, especially in the recent period which has seen an escalation of events in Jerusalem and its suburbs, in addition to admitting eighty injured Palestinians as a result of the Israeli attack on the Gaza Strip last summer.
A group of children from the National Institute of Music then went on stage to give an artistic performance, which won the admiration of the audience.
At the end of the ceremony, diplomas and shields of honor were distributed to the 27 graduating doctors, nine of whom were women, who have completed the medical specialty training program in 2014:
Department of General Surgery: Dr. Mohammed Mer'i, Dr. Fadi Hurani, Dr. Samir Abu Yacoub, Dr. Othman Abu Hantash.
Department of Internal Medicine: Dr. Shaker N'airat, Dr. Mahmoud Abu Issa, Dr. Razan Malhis, Dr. Samah Abdeen, Dr. Saed Atawneh, Dr. Waddah Abed.
Anesthesiology: Dr. Issa Musa, Dr. Mohammed Tahayna;
Radiology Department: Dr. Wissam Aqtit;
Orthopedic Department: Dr. Mamoun Mansour, Dr. Mohammed Al Qadi, Dr. Mahmoud Mubaslat;
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology: Dr. Muhannad Hawi, Dr. Nathalie Ouaina, Dr. Hanadi Da'na, Dr. Ibtisam Abu Rmeis, Dr. Alaa Hamad;
Department of Pediatrics: Dr. Reem Omran, Dr. Samer Abdel Razek, Dr. Layali Joudeh, Dr. Mona Sharaf, Dr. Jamila Bsisso;
Department of Pediatric Surgery: Dr. Radwan Abu Karsh;
Department of Urology: Dr. Mohammed Nader Hamdan.