Hamad Medical Corporation's (HMC) long and proud history as an excellent teaching facility continues with its Medical Education Center being recognized by the Joint Commission International (JCI). 
HMC is the largest Academic (teaching) Medical Center (AMC) in Qatar and one of the largest in the region providing secondary and tertiary medical care. 
The provision of high quality training for medical residents and junior doctors is globally considered to be a key factor in the delivery of excellent patient care. Achieving the position as an internationally recognized teaching institution was a crucial element in the Corporation receiving the official JCI Gold Seal of Approval for accreditation under the Academic Medical Center Hospital standards earlier this month. 
HMC’s Medical Education Center accreditation was the result of meeting stringent standards required by two additional JCI Chapters: Medical Professional Education and Human Subject Research. 
Dr. Abdullatif Al-Khal, Deputy Chief Medical Officer and Director of Medical Education at HMC explained the importance of having an accredited AMC: "Our accredited Graduate Medical Education (GME) program is designed to deliver high quality training to our residents and ensure that our young doctors have high competence levels that will help them take better care of their patients." "Receiving AMC accreditation and meeting exacting medical education standards reflect that the training we deliver to hundreds of young doctors and residents each year is of the highest international standards. It is very important to have the right setting to provide proper medical teaching that ensures the safety of our patients as well as that of our staff. Being an approved teaching center demonstrates this ongoing support of the provision of better quality care." "We have a duty of care towards our young doctors, as well as the medical colleges we partner with, to provide a quality environment for the next generation of physicians to learn how to become excellent and caring doctors. HMC’s JCI accreditation reflects this achievement", Dr. Al-Khal added. 
International evidence suggests that best patient care is delivered through academic centers for a number of practical reasons. For instance, respected academic centers tend to attract high caliber staffs that have the desire to share their knowledge and expertise and contribute to healthcare improvement. Tertiary care teaching centers are geared towards delivering more comprehensive and effective care. This is particularly true for the most complicated cases that benefit from having multi-disciplinary teams that include not only specialists and residents but also consultants who work alongside other team members around the clock. 
HMC’s outstanding GME program has already been internationally recognized with 14 of its residency programs accredited by ACGME-I, the international arm of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. This organization accredits hospitals and medical centers to ensure training for doctors in their residency and fellowship years is of the highest quality. 
"Our training programs are designed to teach our young doctors in internationally approved clinical environments where they also learn about the importance of best practice in quality and patient safety initiatives," Dr Al-Khal said. 
"This accreditation signifies that our training programs meet the highest international standards and will attract more high-caliber young doctors to complete their residency training within HMC", he added.