Hamad Medical Corporation and Aspetar signed an agreement to establish a Clinical Specialist Fellowship in the field of Sports Cardiology.

An agreement to establish a Clinical Specialist Fellowship in Sports Cardiology programme has been signed between Hamad Medical Corporation’s (HMC) Heart Hospital and Aspetar Qatar Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital.

Aspetar is the first specialised Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital in the GCC.

Patients and athletes in Qatar and the rest of the region will benefit from the programme’s development of future medical expertise in Sports Cardiology. The field of Sports Cardiology is constantly and rapidly evolving part of the Cardiology specialty.

Qatar has seen an increase in competitive athletes and individuals with a highly active lifestyle, which calls for more Sports Cardiology expertise in the country.

The role of general cardiologists and sports cardiologists are different. Cardiologists are trained to recognise, diagnose, and treat common cardiovascular conditions such as coronary artery disease and heart rhythm orders. Sports cardiologists are expected to have a better understanding of how activity effects an athlete’s physical and emotional wellbeing. This includes recognising how certain pharmaceutical products or diagnoses may affect performance.

“Our joint Fellowship programme with HMC aims to develop a comprehensive range of sports cardiology clinical skills, which is only possible through being exposed to a variety of athletes from different sporting codes, disciplines, ages, levels of participation, gender, and ethnicity,” said Abdulaziz Al Kuwari, the CEO of Aspetar.

Aspetar will support Sports Cardiology Fellows in pursuing the Sports Cardiology Master’s Program at St George’s University of London, as part of the agreement.

The Program’s Co-Directors, the Heart Hospital Consultant Cardiologist, alongside Aspetar and HMC’s Medical Education Departments, and members of the Fellowship Steering Committee, are in charge of the the two-year agreement, and tasked with developing the programme curriculum according to existing international Sports Cardiology programs.