EMS Department representatives, led by EMS & Security manager Hassan Jassim Abu Khamis, receive the accreditation certificate during the awards ceremony.

Qatargas’ Fire & Rescue Emergency Management Services (EMS) Department has been awarded “Accredited Agency” status by the US-based Centre for Public Safety Excellence (CPSE) making it the first CPSE-accredited agency in the Middle East region.
The CPSE provides the only accreditation programme for Fire & Rescue Emergency Management Service organisations in the world. With the new status, the EMS department joins the lineup of 218 accredited agencies worldwide, Qatargas said in a statement.
EMS Department representatives, led by EMS & Security manager Hassan Jassim Abu Khamis, received the accreditation certificate at an awards ceremony recently organised by CPSE in the US following a face-to-face hearing session with the accreditation commission members.
The awards ceremony culminates a four-year documentation and assessment exercise that involved a rigorous process to determine risk and safety needs, evaluate current performance of the department, and establish a method for achieving continuous improvement.
During the final phase of the process, CPSE officials made site visits at Qatargas headquarters in Doha and Ras Laffan plant to verify the EMS Department’s compliance with the set criteria.  
Qatargas said the accreditation process was “demanding and challenging” for its EMS Department as an industrial-based organisation with multiple sites spread across Ras Laffan Industrial area.
“This feat has demonstrated the department’s commitment to providing high-quality services to Qatargas. The department has been able to use the accreditation process as a proactive mechanism to plan for the future of Qatargas Emergency Management Services and identify areas where it can improve on the quality of services it provides,” the statement said.
It added: “Qatargas, as a company, benefited from the accreditation process. Under the continuous improvement model used in seeking accreditation, the company is required to maintain an active strategic planning programme and a comprehensive assessment of the overall level of risk. This ‘risk assessment’ helped the company make an informed decision on the level of service desired.”
The CPSE Accreditation Commission is governed by an 11-member council representing a cross section of the fire service industry, including fire departments, city and county management, code councils, the US Department of Defence, and the International Association of Firefighters.
Established in 1986, CPSE is a non-profit organisation that serves as the governing body for organisations offering accreditation, education, and credentialing services to agencies and fire service industry professionals.
The CPSE’s accreditation programme is a comprehensive self-assessment and evaluation model that enables fire and emergency service organisations to examine past, current, and future service levels and performance, and compare them to industry best practices.
The CPSE is dedicated to assisting the fire and emergency services agencies throughout the world in achieving excellence through self-assessment and accreditation in order to provide continuous quality improvement and the enhancement of service delivery to their communities.