Sidra Medicine (Sidra), a member of the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development and Qatar’s new hospital for children, young people, and women, has marked the first anniversary of its Pediatric Day Surgery Clinic, a central part of a growing list of world-class services offered at the Sidra Outpatient Clinic.

The state-of-the-art clinic, which admits children for minor surgeries and procedures who would be discharged the same day, has performed over 325 successful surgeries on patients aged from 10 months to 14 years old, since opening last November.

Dr. David Sigalet, Chair of the Department of Surgery at Sidra Medicine, who has over 25 years of experience in surgery, research and academia, emphasized the importance of the facility: “We are delighted to celebrate the first anniversary of one of the key specialty services at Sidra. Conditions which may not be life threatening can nevertheless have significant impact on a child’s life. It is for this reason that Day Surgery is an essential element in any comprehensive healchare provision program.”

Sidra’s Pediatric Day Surgery Clinic is home to 148 specialists who have joined the clinic from Qatar and across the world to contribute their specialty expertise in a patient-centric setting. In addition to Dr. Sigalet, these include: pediatric general and thoracic surgeons Dr. Mansour Ali,  Dr. Guy Brisseau, Dr Basem Khalil and  Dr. Abdalla Zarrougr. Mitchell Stotland and Dr. Graeme Glass who specialize in pediatric plastic and craniofacial surgery; pediatric otolaryngologist Dr. Patrick Sheehan; pediatric neurosurgeon Dr Khalid Al-Kharazi; pediatric orthopedic surgeon Dr Jason Howard; pediatric ophthalmologist Dr Abdul Kamboh; and pediatric urologists Dr. Joao Luiz Pippi Salle, Dr. Bruno Leslie, and Dr. Abderrahman El Khadi.

The clinic, which receives referrals locally and internationally, covers a number of procedures, including: inguinal hernia repairs, orchidopexy (surgery used to bring the testes down), umbilical and epigastric hernia repairs, soft tissue biopsies and hydrocelectomy, ear, nose and throat (ENT) procedures, ophthalmologic procedures, urologic procedures, minor plastic surgery procedures and simple orthopedic and ophthalmology procedures.

Sidra Medicine’s child and family-centric approach is especially important for its young patients. Its allied health services are designed to provide the right atmosphere for the patient before surgery. At Sidra, children work with play therapists who engage the young patients in activities to create a comfortable setting ahead of the procedure and doctors take special care to ensure children feel at ease during procedures.

This approach has received high praise from parents and children alike. Thomene Dilley whose son recently underwent a minor surgery to remove a neck lesion, thanked the hospital for its “incredible work,” saying that: “Sidra has an extraordinary team of experienced healthcare professionals with empathy, passion and deep love for their patients.”

Mrs. Dilley then singled out Dr. Mitchell Stotland, who performed the surgery on her son, saying: “He is simply one of the best doctors we have had the pleasure of meeting. What I personally found profound was not only his beautiful way with children but how he explained everything to us regarding the procedure without leaving my son fearful of what was to come.”