From 24 August to 12 September 2026, ICTP held its College on Medical Physics 2026, a comprehensive programme designed to empower medical physics in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) by achieving excellence through outreach, workshops, education, and research. The College brought together 63 participants from developing countries across Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe, together with an international faculty of directors and lecturers from Europe, the United States, and the Middle East. Combining theoretical lectures with hands-on practical training, the programme aimed to give participants both a deep understanding of medical imaging physics and the practical skills to apply it in their own institutions. Notably, the College was directed by an international faculty that included Dr. M. Hassan Kharita of Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Qatar, and president of The Middle East Federation of Medical Physics (MEFOMP) reflecting the region's active role in the College's leadership.
The programme was further enriched by the participation of Dr. Shady Alkhazzam, Medical Physicist at Hamad Medical Corporation, Qatar, who attended as a lecturer on behalf of the Middle East Federation of Organizations of Medical Physics (MEFOMP). On 4 September 2026, Dr. Alkhazzam delivered two lectures — “DRL – MEFOMP's Reflections on Implementing Dynamic DRLs,” presented within a special session on sharing experience from regional organizations, and “Remote and Automated Quality Control for General Radiography and Mammography.” These were followed by a two-part, hands-on computer laboratory session of about two hours, in which participants applied remote and automated quality-control methods to radiographic and mammographic imaging systems. His contributions combined the latest approaches to dose optimization with practical, reproducible quality-control techniques that participants can apply directly in their own departments.
The programme was further enriched by the participation of Dr. Shady Alkhazzam, Medical Physicist at Hamad Medical Corporation, Qatar, who attended as a lecturer on behalf of the Middle East Federation of Organizations of Medical Physics (MEFOMP). On 4 September 2026, Dr. Alkhazzam delivered two lectures — “DRL – MEFOMP's Reflections on Implementing Dynamic DRLs,” presented within a special session on sharing experience from regional organizations, and “Remote and Automated Quality Control for General Radiography and Mammography.” These were followed by a two-part, hands-on computer laboratory session of about two hours, in which participants applied remote and automated quality-control methods to radiographic and mammographic imaging systems. His contributions combined the latest approaches to dose optimization with practical, reproducible quality-control techniques that participants can apply directly in their own departments.
A particular highlight of the event was a donation of quality-control phantoms, offered as a gift from MEFOMP and HMC, Qatar. Seven automated QC radiography phantoms were distributed to participants from low- and middle-income countries — Bangladesh, India, Kenya, Nepal, Zambia, Malawi, and Rwanda — together with two mammography QC phantoms presented to Rwanda and India. These tools will enable the recipients to establish and sustain routine quality-control programmes for diagnostic imaging equipment in their home institutions, turning the knowledge gained during the College into lasting, everyday practice.
This initiative reflects the shared commitment of MEFOMP and HMC to promoting a culture of quality control in diagnostic radiology and to supporting medical institutions with limited resources. By pairing education with the practical means to apply it, the contribution helps to narrow the gap in imaging quality and radiation safety between well-resourced and resource-limited settings — a goal that lies at the very heart of the College's mission to empower medical physics in developing countries.
The participation of Dr. Alkhazzam, on behalf of MEFOMP and HMC, once again demonstrates the growing leadership of the Middle East region in advancing medical physics education, quality assurance, and international cooperation. MEFOMP remains dedicated to strengthening scientific capacity across the region and beyond, and to fostering partnerships that improve patient safety and the quality of medical imaging for communities worldwide.
The participation of Dr. Alkhazzam, on behalf of MEFOMP and HMC, once again demonstrates the growing leadership of the Middle East region in advancing medical physics education, quality assurance, and international cooperation. MEFOMP remains dedicated to strengthening scientific capacity across the region and beyond, and to fostering partnerships that improve patient safety and the quality of medical imaging for communities worldwide.