Under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, RCSI Bahrain hosted a virtual conferring ceremony to celebrate the graduation of 84 Bachelor graduates from the School of Nursing and Midwifery and eight Nursing Master graduates from the School of Postgraduate Studies and Research.

Attending the virtual ceremony on behalf of His Royal Highness, His Excellency Lieutenant General Dr Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, Chairman of the Supreme Council of Health addressed the Class of 2021 and their families stated: “The 2021 graduates will soon be joining their colleagues in the hospitals in Bahrain and abroad. Nurses make an invaluable contribution to patient care and your valuable support to healthcare services at this challenging time will be extremely welcomed. 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, followed by speeches from the President of RCSI, Professor P. Ronan O'Connell and Chancellor of NUI (National University of Ireland), Dr Maurice Manning, who all praised the graduates for their perseverance during these difficult circumstances and expressed their eagerness for the graduates to transition into their roles as healthcare leaders around the world.

Professor Otoom commended the graduates of the Class of 2021 for succeeding in completing their studies and obtaining their degrees “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 challenging circumstances. Thanks to the incredible support of our partner hospitals, the graduates have overcome unexpected difficulties to reach this stage and they are all worthy of our admiration and congratulations.”

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.

The Director of Bachelor of Science Nursing Programme, Dr Eman Tawash recited the names for the School of Nursing and Midwifery Bachelor graduates and the Director of the Masters in Nursing Programme, Professor Maura Pidgeon recited those for the Nursing Master graduates from the School of Postgraduate Studies and Research.

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 Nursing and Midwifery class valedictorian, Jenan Ahmed Hasan Albaqali, received the BSc Nursing Overall Gold Medal, Year Four Bronze Medal and Year Three Silver Medal. The BSc Nursing Year Four Silver Medal and Rufaida Alaslamia Prize in Nursing were awarded to Maryam Mohamed Bujandal, and the MSc Nursing Gold Medal was awarded to Elizabeth Spyropoulos.

The Nursing Year One Bronze Medal and Nursing Year Two Silver Medal were awarded to Zainab Sayed Husain. The Nursing Year One Silver Medal and Nursing Year Two and Year Three Bronze Medals were awarded to Hawra Abdulla Hasan.

In drawing the ceremony to a close, Professor Nicholson said: “You have shown a great deal courage and resilience and have risen to the challenge so well. Across the world, we need high quality and committed nurses and healthcare professionals who go that extra mile for their patients. 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.