Excitement and pride drive medical volunteers at international sporting event

The University of Calgary in Qatar (UCQ) supplied 16 instructors and 64 nursing students to work as medical volunteers at last week’s 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar.

This was a unique opportunity for UCQ instructors and students and for many of them it was the first time volunteering at a high profile international sporting event. Despite sweltering temperatures in excess of 40 C and humidity some evenings at over 70 per cent, it was a very positive experience for everyone involved.

“We were honoured to participate in this important event for Qatar,” says Haitham Kan’an, UCQ instructor and volunteer co-ordinator. “This was a very practical learning experience for our students because they could observe various medical professionals in action all working as a team. UCQ is committed to helping Qatar reach its health-care goals, so volunteering for an event like this is a natural fit for our faculty and students.”

• Photo above: Stefani McCollum, ambassador of Canada to the State of Qatar (back row, centre) poses with a delegation of Canadian athletes and UCQ volunteers at the Canadian Embassy in Doha, Qatar. University of Calgary in Qatar photo

The university shifted the timing of several classes to accommodate the event schedule and training, explains Kan’an. “This was a great community service opportunity we didn’t want our students to miss. We want our students, and the community at large here, to understand that nurses are actively contributing to Qatar’s health-care sector and making a positive impact in this country.”

“I was excited to volunteer and was proud to be a part of this incredible event,” says Hajar Al Kuwari, a UCQ student. “I think this was a good example of how nurses can contribute to Qatari society and to big international events like this that come to our country. We did this because we wanted to help Qatar and to broaden our own education.”

Established in 2007, UCQ educates Qatar’s future nursing leaders. Accredited in Canada, and adapted to the local culture, the University’s curriculum provides nursing students with the knowledge and expertise to become fully integrated leaders in Qatar’s health-care sector. More than 700 UCQ alumni work in the acute care hospitals, primary health centres, and clinics around the country. UCQ is Qatar’s only Canadian university and its sole provider of bachelor and master's degrees in nursing.

• Photo above: UCQ faculty volunteers from left: Cassandra Iammarino, Shannan MacNevin, Danaiet Teame, Carolyn Wolsey, Diana White, Arlene Masaba,  Danielle Macdonald, Susan Yates, Frankie Wong, Vaeria-Alina Botis, Donna Wood (kneeling).