Alumni Spotlight

 Dr. Noor Alsalemi, BSc. Pharm, PharmD

 PhD Candidate, University of Montreal, Canada

Dr. Noor Alsalemi graduated in 2011 with a BSc Pharm from the  College of Pharmacy (CPH), Qatar University (QU), one of the  only  Pharmacy Programs outside of Canada with international  accreditation by the Canadian Council of Accreditation of  Pharmacy Programs. Dr. Noor is from the first batch of pharmacy  students at CPH-QU, ranking 1^st in her undergraduate class.  Immediately after completion of her BSc. Pharm degree, Dr. Noor enrolled in the Doctor of Pharmacy Program at CPH-QU and was one of the first graduates of the PharmD program at CPH-QU. Upon graduation,  Dr. Noor worked as a teaching assistant at CPH-QU (2013-2014), then as a clinical pharmacist at the geriatrics ward at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) (2014- 2017). In 2015, Dr. Noor joined the Hamad Quality Improvement Institute as a quality improvement coach (2015-2017). Currently, she is pursuing a PhD at the University of Montreal, Canada with an expected completion date of 2021.

 Over the course of Dr. Noor’s studies and employment period, she has received a number of awards and has been recognized as a successful clinical pharmacist and researcher. These awards include Distinctive Personal Career Development Achievements Award for 2016 - Hamad Medical Corporation and College of Medicine Scholarship. Recently, Dr. Noor was awarded the Frederick Banting and Charles Best Canada Graduate Scholarship from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) the Fonds de Research Santé Quebec training award, both very competitive and prestigious scholarships.

Dr. Noor’s research has shed light on the important role of pharmacists in the field of medications safety; a topic that is of great relevance in Qatar and around the globe. More specifically, Dr. Noor’s research projects addressed several issues in pharmacists’ quality and quantity of reporting adverse drug reactions and means to overcome such issues. Dr. Noor has published four research articles, 3 of which she is the first author and has contributed to the publishing of a book chapter.  Her research has been recognized at various national and international conferences. In 2016, she received the Best Presentation Abstract award at the HMC annual research forum. Dr. Noor has also presented her research or a journal club on numerous occasions at HMC. Furthermore, Dr. Noor is a reviewer of the International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Annals of Pharmacotherapy.

Currently, Dr. Noor’s PhD research focuses on “The Design and Validation of Clinical Decision-Support Algorithm for Clinicians to help in the Prescribing of Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone Blockers (RAABs) for Diabetic Nephroprotection in Older Patients”. The overall aim of this project is to develop and validate a clinical decision support algorithm for clinicians to help with prescribing RAABs for the prevention of diabetic nephropathy in older patients with diabetes. “We hypothesize that this tool has the potential to accomplish a better standardized yet tailored care for older adults who will achieve their expected and realistic clinical targets resulting in less adverse drug events, health system use, and cost”. Dr. Noor explained that the idea of this research project was addressed while she was in Qatar on the ward as a clinical pharmacist at the geriatrics ward at HMC-QU. She recognized the need for identifying evidence based practice for prescribing medications for geriatrics patients; a scenario much too often encountered not only in Qatar but around the world. During her practice as clinical pharmacist, she spent much effort on this topic and in fact implemented a new system for prescribing medications at the geriatrics wards in HMC. This protocol was selected to be part of the quality improvement initiatives at HMC,  where she was assigned to lead and pilot the new system. “I was glad to see the prescribing pattern to older patients change, but I wanted to explore my full potential in the arena of appropriate prescribing to the elderly through pursuing a thesis-based doctorate degree in Canada”. Dr. Noord plans to come back to Qatar with a novel validated tool that could be applied in practice in elderly patients. Dr. Noor believes that her research project could serve as a practice-changer in Qatar, as it can save costs and allocate medicinal resources appropriately, while providing the best care to geriatric patients.  

The question that many of us have is why did Dr. Noor decide to pursue a career in Pharmacy. When we asked Dr. Noor this question,  she replied that she was interested in being in the profession which she felt was thriving at such a fast pace in the Middle East.  Furthermore, her encounter with the founding Dean of CPH-QU, Dr. Peter Jewesson, who portrayed the pharmacy profession as a revolution and renaissance to the health profession, Dr. Noor could not resist but see herself as part of this dream. Dr. Noor describes CPH-QU as a pioneer pharmacy school in the Middle East. “CPH-QU provided me with a challenging curriculum. This demanding but innovative curriculum provided Qatar with batches of unique pharmacy graduates who are ready to represent QU in any arena; to work at hospitals, research centers, or academic organizations inside or outside the Middle East. As a result, many of the CPH-QU graduates are able to pursue their dreams with no difficulties”. She described how the admission committee at the University of Montreal appreciated her skills and knowledge as a CPH-QU graduate. “I owe my success and achievements in my professional career to CPH-QU. It contributed to my success to date”.

Publications:

1. Alsalimy N, Madi L, Awaisu A.  Efficacy and safety of laxatives for chronic constipation in long-term care settings: A systematic review. Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics. 2018; 43(5): 595-605.
2. Alsalimy N, Elkhalifa D, Al Shamaa A, Magdy M, Awaisu A. Characteristics and quality of adverse drug reactions reporting: a comparison of pharmacists with other healthcare providers at a multi-specialty hospital in Qatar.  Drugs and Therapy Perspectives. 2017; 33(6): 283–289.
3. Awaisu A, Alsalimy N. Pharmacists’ Involvement in and Attitudes Toward Pharmacy Practice Research: A Systematic Review of the Literature. Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy. 2015; 11(6):25-48.
4. Alsalimy N, Awaisu A. Methoxy Polyethylene Glycol-epoetin Beta Versus Darbepoetin Alfa for Anemia in Non-dialysis Dependent CKD: A Systematic Review. International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy. 2014; 36(6): 1115-1125.

Book Chapters:

1. Awaisu A, Kheir N, Alsalimy N, Babar Z. Pharmacists’ Attitudes Toward Pharmacy Practice Research: A Review. Babar Z. Pharmacy Practice Research Methods. 2015; 237-247.

Oral Presentations:

1. Alsalemi N, Lafrance JP. The Design, Validation and Implementation of a Novel Clinical Decision Supporting Algorithm for Geriatricians. La Journée Scientifique du Centre de Recherche HMR, Canada. 2018/06
2. Alsalemi N, Khalifa D, Alshamma A, Ibrahim M, Awaisu A. Characteristics and Qualities of Adverse Drug Reactions and Reporting among Healthcare Providers at Rumailah Hospital in Qatar: A Retrospective Study. Qatar Medical Journal. HMC Collaborative Pharmacy Conference, Qatar. 2016/03
3. Alsalemi N, Elsayed M. Implementation of Comprehensive Medication Review Process for Residents at Enaya Specialized Care Center. Clinical Care Improvement Training Program, Qatar. 2015/06
4. Alsalemi N, Zolezzi M. Geriatrics Care. Continuous Professional Pharmacy Development. Qatar University. 2014/11