Under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland – Medical University of Bahrain (RCSI Bahrain) hosted a virtual conferring ceremony to celebrate the graduation of the Class of 2021 School of Medicine graduates.

Attending the virtual ceremony on behalf of His Royal Highness, HE Lieutenant General Dr Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, Chairman of the Supreme Council of Health, delivered a congratulatory message to the 152 graduates and their families.

His Excellency stated: “The 2021 graduates will soon be joining their colleagues in the workforce and their much-needed contribution to the healthcare services in Bahrain and across the world at this challenging time will be even more crucial. The graduates have chosen a profession to support patients and conduct innovative research to pave new ways forward in healthcare around the world, therefore they deserve all our support and admiration. I extend my sincere congratulations to the 2021 graduates, and I wish you all great success in your future endeavours.”

The conferring ceremony commenced with an address by the President of RCSI Bahrain, Professor Sameer Otoom, commending the graduates of the Class of 2021 for succeeding in completing their studies and obtaining their degrees while facing the challenges of the pandemic. Professor Otoom said in his address: “We are extremely honoured that this conferring is under the patronage of his Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain and we extend our sincere appreciation to His Royal Highness. We are all very proud of our 2021 Graduates for demonstrating great dedication and fulfilling their commitment to completing their programme of studies with success, despite the challenges. They have overcome unexpected difficulties to reach this stage and are all worthy of our admiration and congratulations.”

President of RCSI, Professor P. Ronan O'Connell and Chancellor of NUI (National University of Ireland), Dr Maurice Manning also addressed the Class of 2021, praising them for their resilience during these challenging times and expressed their eagerness for the graduates to join the lines of healthcare leaders around the world.

The Master of Ceremony for the conferring, Professor of Surgery and Head of Department of Surgery at RCSI Bahrain, Professor Martin Corbally, virtually presented the graduates with their degrees and recited with them their Graduates Declaration; a proclamation of their commitment to maintaining the highest standards of professionalism and ethical practice in their careers. Associate Professor in Family Medicine, Professor Ghufran Jassim also congratulated the Class of 2021 and announced the names of the 152 medical graduates.

The virtual conferring ceremony for the Class of 2021 concluded with Vice President for Academic Affairs and Head of School of Medicine of RCSI Bahrain, Professor Alfred Nicholson’s presentation of awards to the highest achieving students. The School of Medicine class valedictorian, Dr Ali Mohamed Ali Sabah received the Highest Aggregate Marks Gold Medal, Senior Cycle Bronze Medal, the Professor Niall O’Higgins Prize in Surgery and first place for the inaugural Professor David Whitford Prize in General Practice. Dr Hajar Sayed Abdulla was awarded the Professor John Murphy Prize in Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Dr Ahmed Ali Alekri received the Professor James Finucane Prize in Medicine and Dr Jay Chieh Liu Jr received the Best Paediatrics Project Award. Dr Manar Sayed Qasim Husain was also awarded with the Senior Cycle Silver Medal and the Degree Award Marks Gold Medal. New prizes have also been established this year, with the first places being awarded to Dr Mina Maher Iskandar for the Professor Joe McMenamin Prize in Paediatrics and Dr Fatima Mohamed Shaheen for the Professor Charlotte Kamel Prize in Psychiatry.

In drawing the ceremony to a close, Professor Nicholson said: “You have shown enormous courage and resilience particularly throughout the past 15 months and have risen to the challenge so well. Across the world, we need high quality and committed doctors who go that extra mile for their patients. Medicine is a wonderful career which will lead you to make a positive impact on the lives of so many. I offer you heartfelt congratulations and wish you every success as you embark on the next phase of your career.”

Since hosting its first Conferring Ceremony in 2010, RCSI Bahrain has produced more than 2,200 graduates in medicine, nursing and postgraduate studies who are now working in 30 countries across the world.