A leading Qatari physician at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) is using the skills and experience she gained through a prestigious international fellowship programme to drive quality improvements and help provide better outcomes for patients.
Dr Jameela al-Ajmi, executive director of Corporate Infection Prevention and Control (CIPC), recently completed her fellowship training at the Institute of Healthcare Improvement (IHI) in the US and called it a transformative experience.
“A lot of the work we do at HMC is focused on discovering new ways and establishing innovative procedures which are ultimately aimed at enhancing healthcare outcomes for our patients,” said Dr al-Ajmi, one of a cadre of Qatari doctors in clinical leadership roles at HMC.
“The training that I received under my fellowship programme has been instrumental in achieving this as we have been able to collaboratively change processes, communicate with staff about safety concerns, improve communication with patients and families and use the feedback to enhance our infection control practices to offer safer hospital environments.”
The fellowship offered jointly by HMC and IHI is aimed at driving improvements in patient safety and quality across healthcare settings and provides formal training to healthcare professionals in key elements including leadership, improvement science quality measurement and outcomes of care.
Under the programme, Dr al-Ajmi said she was able to build her capabilities and realise the essence of leadership in transforming and advancing healthcare.
During her fellowship, Dr al-Ajmi participated in a number of IHI learning initiatives, including visits to different US healthcare facilities, and interacted with experts in healthcare quality improvement.
“The IHI training in addition to other training opportunities that HMC has provided has enabled me to grow as a leader in infection control and prevention,” recalled Dr al-Ajmi who presently works as an adviser of the IHI-HMC fellowship programme and mentor individuals working on improvement projects and assess their progress.
Dr al-Ajmi oversees several key areas in quality improvement and patient safety at HMC and heads the CIPC programme. She directs staff and partners with other key leaders to develop infection control policies and procedures for better patient healthcare outcomes.
She also collaborates with cross-functional leaders across national and regional public health agencies such as the Supreme Council of Health and Gulf Co-operation Council’s Infection Control Advisory Board to report communicable diseases and prepare action plans to combat emerging infectious diseases in the region.
“Our aim is to build on current infection control initiatives - such as the Hand Hygiene campaign, which encourages staff, patients and visitors across our hospitals to adopt effective hand hygiene practices - and introduce new measures based on international best practices in infection prevention to uphold the culture of safety across our facilities.”