Doha: Over 72 students from Qatar University (QU) College of Pharmacy (CPH) and the Department of Health Sciences, College of North Atlantic-Qatar (CNA-Q), University of Calgary-Qatar (UCQ) and Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar (WCM-Q) participated in the second IPE activity on smoking cessation.
The workshop at CNA-Q started with an ice-breaker activity to familiarise the students with the concept of interprofessional education and for them to share the commonalities and differences of their academic disciplines and professional backgrounds.
Opening the event, Alla El Awaisi, Assistant Dean, Student Affairs, and IPE Chair, said: “Part of our goal from these workshops is preparing our students for shared decisionmaking through collaborative practice in their careers ahead.
“Smoking cessation is an effective model for showcasing this collaboration and providing an environment for students of all healthcare backgrounds to understand and respect their roles and responsibilities to stakeholders.”
Irene O’Brien, Dean, CNA-Q School of Health Sciences, said: “It is a pleasure to host healthcare students on our campus to help build professional aptitude and educational opportunities.
“Healthcare is all about teamwork and improving patient care — it is wonderful that students can gain practice in the area to better prepare themselves for when they start working in Qatar’s healthcare system.”
The students were oriented on the relevance of smoking cessation and the role of healthcare providers by
Dr Ahmed Awaisu, Assistant Professor, CPH, who also stressed the role for collaborative care in tobacco cessation clinics as part of the strategies to control tobacco use in Qatar.
On the importance of students in healthcare profession disciplines joining forces for a healthier Qatar, he said: “Learning together using an IPE model is a unique opportunity to build a strong foundation for future partnership among pharmacy, medical, public health, nursing and allied health professional students.
“Collaboration of this capacity provides all students with the opportunity to further their skillsets and become more well-rounded healthcare practitioners in the workplace.”
Students were later engaged in addressing cases of smoking cessation adopting the strategies learned during a session conducted by Dr Mohamud Verjee, Associate Professor, Family Medicine in Clinical Medicine, WCM-Q. One such case involved helping a heavy smoker suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to stop smoking. Also discussed were strategies and roles in establishing a smoking cessation clinic.
Second-year CPH student Radoa Al Ansari said: “Collaborating with students from other healthcare programmes gives us a better understanding of each other’s roles and perspectives in the healthcare team. These sessions provide us with tools we will need in the workplace to provide optimal care to patient.
“Working together for the betterment of the patient is everyone’s goal,” Al Ansari added.The Peninsula
