Gulf Pediatric
Critical Care
Conference

Dr. Ikram Haque

Conference Chair
Qatar

Dr. Haque is the Division Chief of Pediatric Critical Care at Sidra Medicine in Doha, Qatar. He leads the division in building a pediatric critical care program of excellence. Dr. Haque is board-certified by the American Board in General Pediatrics and Pediatric Critical Care Medicine. He has served on multiple committees at the Society of Critical Care Medicine, the American Heart Association, and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Haque has presented many talks at regional and international conferences and has won excellence mentor and teacher awards from both the universities of Florida and Texas. His research focuses on cardiopulmonary resuscitation techniques, therapeutic hypothermia, ischemic neurologic injury, and the relationship between Pediatric Asthma and Obesity. He has received multiple peer-reviewed grants and numerous publications in reputable journals in resuscitation and critical care.

Dr. Patricia Abboud

Qatar

Dr. Patricia A. Abboud M.D. MBA, CPE is a Senior Attending physician and the Medical Director in the PICU at Sidra Medicine in Doha Qatar and Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at WCM-Q.  She completed her critical care fellowship training at Cincinnati Children’s Medical Center in Cincinnati Ohio USA and is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics in General Pediatrics and Pediatric Critical Care Medicine.  She is a Certified Physician Executive through the American Association for Physician Leadership and has her Master’s in Business Administration with a concentration in medical management from the University of Massachusetts, Isenberg School of Management.

Dr. Tareq Al Ayed

KSA

Consultant, Pediatric Intensivist Director of Pediatric Critical Care
Deputy Chairman of critical care Department of Critical Care Medicine King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre

MBC 94, P.O. Box 3354 Riyadh 11211, Saudi Arabia

Work Phone: +966112162919 Ext: 32193

• Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery (MBBS) - College of Medicine, King Saud University
• Diploma in Child Health - Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons, Ireland
• Executive Master Degree in Health Administration, College of Business Administration, King Saud University, February 1, 2024.
• Fellowship in Pediatric Critical Care Medicine - McGil University Montreal Canada
• Consultant, Pediatric Intensivist (Oct 2001 to present) - KFSH&RC
• Deputy Chairman, Department of Critical Care Medicine (Nov 2023 to present) - KFSH&RC
• Director, Pediatric Cardiac and Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (July 2023 – present) - KFSH&RC
• Deputy Head of Pediatric Critical Care Saudi Fellowship Training Committee, Saudi Council of Health Specialties (Feb 2019 to present)
• Chief Executive Director of Saudi Society of Critical Care (March 2020 to present)
• Director of Pediatric Telemedicine Critical Care (April 2014 to present)

Dr. Said Al Hanshi

Oman

• MD, DCH, MRCPCH, FRCPCH, Fellowship in pediatric Intensive care, Royal Children’s hospital, Melbourne, Australia.
• Senior consultant, Pediatric Intensivist
• Head of Pediatric intensive care unit, Royal hospital, Muscat, Oman
• ECMO Program Director at the Royal hospital, Oman.
• Member of SWAC-ELSO steering committee and Oman representative

Dr. Hashem Alhashemi

Kuwait

Head of PICU, Farwaniya Hospital

Dr. Hashim Al-Hashimi was born on June 16, 1972, in the United Arab Emirates. He obtained his bachelor's degree in medicine and general surgery from King Faisal bin Abdulaziz University in Dammam in 1996. He received his Kuwaiti Board certification in pediatrics in 2003 from the Kuwait Institute for Medical Specializations. He completed a subspecialty in pediatric intensive care at King Abdulaziz Medical City in Riyadh in 2006 from the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties.

He headed the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Farwaniya Hospital from its establishment in 2006 until 2020. He earned a Certified Auditor certificate from Accreditation Canada. Dr. Al-Hashimi served as a member of the Supreme Committee for Medical Errors at the Ministry of Health from 2016 to 2022 and has been the director of the Inspection and Audit Office at the Ministry of Health since 2019. He has led the central COVID-19 team at the Ministry of Health in response to the pandemic since it began in 2020 and has participated in numerous medical research studies related to COVID-19. Additionally, he contributed to developing the Ministry of Health's vision and building its new organizational structure, which was approved by the Civil Service Council in 2021.

Dr. Mussab Al Ramsi

UAE

Dr.Musaab Alramsi earned his medical degree from UAE University, Al Ain in 2006. He was subsequently trained in general pediatrics at Tufts Medical Center, Boston, and followed by training in pediatric critical care medicine at the Stanford University School of Medicine, California, USA. He is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics in general pediatrics and in pediatric critical care medicine, and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. He is currently the Chairman of Critical Care Medicine at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City, Abu Dhabi, and Local Principal investigator of PROSpect trial in UAE, has multiple publications in the field of pediatric critical care medicine.

Dr. Khaled El Lithy

Qatar

Dr. Khaled El Lithy holds the position as Head of PICU’s at Hamad Medical Corporation, he is also the Chief of Pediatrics in Al Wakra Hospital and is a Senior PICU Consultant at Hamad Medical Corporation. Dr. Khaled has vast experience in clinical operations, leadership and education.

Dr. Khaled was actively leading various committees in the Pediatric Department such as Pediatric Critical Care Committee, PICU Quality & Patient Safety Committee & CPR Committee both HMC and AWH and he was also involved in several corporate committees at HMC. In addition to his administrative role at HMC and clinical duties he assists in resident training & faculty development by providing didactic lectures and workshops. Dr. Khaled is currently an instructor of Advanced Pediatrics Life Support (APLS), Fundamentals of Critical Care Support (FCCS), Pediatric Life Support (PLS) and Pediatric Safe Procedural Sedation (PSPS).

Dr. Manu Sundaram

Qatar

Dr. Sundaram joined Sidra Medicine in January of 2018 as a Physician in the Pediatric Intensive Care. He is the Medical Director for Quality at Sidra Medicine and an Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar. Dr Sundaram worked as an Assistant Professor in Pediatrics after qualifying from the Saurashtra University, India in 2001. He moved to UK in 2004 and has been trained in pediatric intensive care medicine with an interest in respiratory medicine. He completed his PICU training from Birmingham Children’s Hospital and has worked as a Consultant in Pediatric Intensive Care Medicine at the University Hospital of North Midlands, UK.

Dr. Grace Leeuwen

Qatar

Dr. Grace van Leeuwen is Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine – Qatar. She has more than 15 years of experience in Pediatric Cardiac Critical Care, currently serving as a Senior Attending at Sidra Medicine’s Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit in Qatar, where she joined in May 2019. At Sidra Medicine, she is a member of the ethics committee and responsible for the Neonatal and Pediatric ECMO transport program.

Dr. Grace van Leeuwen is a Co- Chair of the Congenital Heart Academy. She also served as Co-Chair of Marketing and Communication Committee of the 8^th World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery 2023 She is part of the editorial board of the Congenital Heart Disease Journal, and ELSO education, and was part of the ECMO working group for COVID19 at ELSO.

She has published several papers and book chapters on her field, including the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO): 2020 Pediatric Respiratory ECMO Guideline. Dr. van Leeuwen was previously employed at Sabará Children’s Hospital in São Paulo, Brazil, where she held multiple positions, including Head of the Heart Center. Her notable contributions to the center include leading the development of the Neonatal and Pediatrics Cardiac and ECMO programs, making it the first ECMO center in Brazil to receive the ELSO Award of Excellence. She used her experience and expertise at Sidra, helping Sidra’s ECMO program to achieve the same Award of Excellence. She is board-certified in Pediatrics, Pediatric Cardiology, Interventional Cardiology and Critical Care.

Dr. Duncan Macrae

Qatar

Prof. Duncan Macrae trained in intensive care medicine and anesthesia in Scotland, London, and Australia. He joined Sidra Medicine in 2019 from London, UK, where he was a Consultant and Clinical Director at the Royal Brompton Hospital and previously Consultant in Intensive Care and ECMO at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

He is an acknowledged international expert in his field with over 200 publications and research contributions which include several large multicenter clinical trials.

Dr. Jihad Zahraa

UAE

A Consultant Pediatric Intensivist and currently the head of Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Aljalila Children’s Hospital, Dubai.
He is American Board certified in Pediatric in 1995 and Pediatrics Critical Care Medicine in 1998.
In 2014 had a Certificate in Pediatric Bioethics from Children Mercy Bioethics Center, Kansas City, Missouri, USA and in 2016 a Master of Science in Health Science, Health Care Quality, from George Washington University, USA
Special interest and skills: Pediatric bioethics and end of life support/debates, Point of Care US in critical care, Simulation based learning/training.
Dr. Zahraa is active in medical education and has participated in many local, national and international meetings as an invited speaker and/or organizer. He is a committed instructor or director of many educational activities.

Dr. Ricardo Branco

Qatar

MD, PhD, FRCPCH

Dr. Branco joined Sidra Medicine in November of 2018 as an Attending Physician in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). He Co-chairs the Clinical Effectiveness and Clinical Audit groups at Sidra.
Dr Branco trained in Brazil and in the UK, where he obtained a PhD in Pediatric at the University of Cambridge. He worked as a Consultant in Pediatric Intensive Care at Cambridge University Hospitals from 2011 to 2018.

He has an expertise Pediatric Critical Care and NeuroCritical care, with research interest in the stress response to acute and critical illness. Dr Branco has lectured in multiple international meetings and conferences. and Critical Care.

Dr. Raghad Al-Abdwani

Oman

Dr. Raghad Al-Abdwani is a distinguished Senior Consultant and is the Head of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital (SQUH), University Medical City, Oman. After completing her residency and PICU fellowship, she joined PICU at Sultan Qaboos Univeristy Hospital and has been instrumental in elevating the quality of care and pioneering the establishment of the High Dependency Unit at the hospital.

Dr. Al-Abdwani is a passionate advocate for medical education and healthcare improvement. She is the Associate Program Director and Chairperson of the Simulation Committee for the Pediatric Residency Program, Oman Specialty Medical Board. She also serves as the Chairperson of the Examination Committee for the Pediatric Critical Care Fellowship Program in Oman.
Dr. Al-Abdwani is actively involved in various national and international initiatives. She is a member of the WFPICCS Physician Education Committee and the National Organ Transplant Committee, as well as the National Task Force for Brain Death. A dedicated educator, Dr. Al-Abdwani is also a certified instructor in Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) and Pediatric Fundamental Critical Care Support (PFCCS) through the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM), equipping healthcare professionals with the skills needed to excel in high-stakes environments.

Dr. Yasser Kazzaz

KSA

Dr. Kazzaz received his medical degree from King Saud University in 2007, his training in pediatrics at McGill University in 2011, and his pediatric critical care fellowship at McGill University in 2013. He then completed an advanced critical care Fellowship at McGill for one year and then two years at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), including a paediatric Extracorporeal Life Support/Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation clinical fellowship. He obtained masters of public health in health systems and quality management in 2020 at KSAU-HS.

He is currently appointed as program director, pediatric intensive care/pediatric cardiac intensive care physician, and associate professor of pediatrics/Pediatric Critical Care at King Abdulaziz Medical City/King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS).

Dr. Kazzaz current research interest is focused on improving quality of care in pediatrics critical care through quality improvement projects and simulation with a specific interest in extracorporeal life support, sepsis, and organ donation.

Dr. Fajer Altammar

Kuwait

Dr. Fajer Altammar is a Royal College certified Pediatrician and Pediatric Intensivist with a second fellowhsip in Pediatric Emergency Medicine. She currently serves as the Head of Pediatrics Department in Jahra Hospital. She is also a clinical tutor in Kuwait Board of Pediatrics. Dr. Altammar is a co-founding member of Kuwait PICU Taskforce. She has multiple interests including PICU liberation, simulation, critical thinking and leadership.

Dr. Amrita Sarpal

Qatar

MD, FRCPC

Dr. Sarpal joined Sidra Medicine in February 2019 as a senior pediatric critical care attending with dual training in pediatric critical care medicine and pediatric palliative care medicine. She came from the University of Western Ontario where she had been a practicing pediatric intensivist for approximately six years.

She is the subspecialty fellowship program director for the ACGMEI-I accredited Pediatric Critical Care Medicine. Dr. Sarpal is the chair of Palliative Care Network - Qatar (PCN-Q), a volunteer driven network of likeminded individuals whose passion includes palliative care and supporting patients and their caregivers at end of life. In addition, Dr. Sarpal is the deputy chair of the Clinical Ethics Committee.

Her clinical and academic interests include the overlap between critical care, palliative care, and medical education with a focus on postgraduate medical education, communication, end of life and palliative care, health care provider distress and resilience.

Dr. Gehan Mostafa Abdalla Aly

Qatar

MD

Dr. Gehan Mostafa joined Sidra Medicine in March 2018 as a senior attending physician in the Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU). She also serves as the Physician Lead for Quality and Safety and is an active member of the Resuscitation Committee at Sidra Medicine.
Dr. Mostafa specializes in managing critically ill children, with a particular focus on life-threatening cardiac conditions and advanced extracorporeal treatment modalities, including extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).
Before joining Sidra Medicine, Dr. Mostafa spent 16 years as a consultant in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at the Medical University of Vienna (MUV) in Austria. During her tenure at MUV, she developed a comprehensive follow-up program for ECMO patients after ICU discharge. In addition, as university faculty, she contributed to academic teaching through lecture series and bedside modules in the PICU.