University of Alabama at Birmingham (USA) visits Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University

By Dr. Emad Tanbour

Dean of Quality and Accreditation, PMU

Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University has received University of Alabama (UAB) Dean of Health Professions and a group of professors of Graduate Studies in Health Administration.  The Dean Professor Harold Jones and Professor Robert Hernandez led the American delegation.  The visiting team was also accompanied by Dr. Mohammad Al-Saghier, Director of International Relations at King Fahd Specialty Hospital in Dammam, KSA.

The visitors were received by a team of PMU administrators and academic leader headed by Dr. Adel Al-Saleh, Vice Rector for Business Development and Dr. Nassar Shaikh, Vice Rector of Academic Affairs.

The distinguished guests continue the on-going discussions with PMU leadership regarding the process to establish a Program of Master Degree in Health Administration jointly between UAB and PMU.  Under such program, PMU will be the venue to provide the program in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The teams also discussed the collaboration in the areas of allied health education through the planned PMU College of Medicine that is under planning in collaboration with King Fahd Specialty Hospital and the upcoming King Khalid Medical City.

The visit of the American team also provided the opportunity for PMU to learn more about the programs at UAB that are targeting low vision therapy and visually impaired therapy.  The two sides also discussed the possibility for collaboration between these programs and the Prince Sultan College for the Visually Impaired under establishment by PMU in the areas of rehabilitation of low vision people.

During the visit, the American team was able to tour PMU and learn about PMU’s unique governance, system design, curriculum and academic affairs.  The visiting team expressed profound satisfaction regarding the achievements PMU has arrived since its inception.  The visitors also toured the technology and state of the art campus of PMU.

It is expected that these discussions between the two sides will provide opportunities for graduate studies in Health Administration for workers in the health care sector of the Kingdom.  It is also the hope of these discussions to collaborate to establish Allied Health programs to satisfy the emerging needs of these specialties in the Kingdom.

It is PMU’s mission to seek the establishment of the above programs due to its leap impact on the community and its benefits to the health care practitioners in the Kingdom.