14 | January 2013 www.womanthismonth.com Interview Pioneering Service A recent international award for Dr Shaikha Salim Al Arrayed crowns her three decades of distinguished service in battling genetic diseases in the Kingdom. As Bahrain’s most senior genetic diseases specialist, Dr Shaikha Al Arrayed has been at the forefront of the Kingdom’s long and hard battle against hereditary diseases. After setting up a genetics clinic in Salmaniya Hospital back in 1984, she has spearheaded extensive campaigns aimed at reducing the incidence of genetic diseases in Bahrain as well as improving the management of patients with this condition. The results are apparent. In the 1980s, out of every 1,000 babies born in the Kingdom, 21 were affected by the sickle cell gene. The number is now close to four babies for every 1,000 births. Dr Shaikha has now been awarded the Dr A.T. Shousha Foundation Prize and Fellowship for her significant service in the field of public health, specifically recognising her role in the control of genetic diseases. The Dr A.T. Shousha Foundation was established in 1966 in memory of Dr Aly Tewfik Shousha, the first World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean. The annual prize, consisting of a sum in the order of CHF2,500 and a bronze medal, is awarded to a person who has made the most significant contribution to improving health in the Eastern Mediterranean, the geographical area in which Dr A.T. Shousha served the Organisation. “I’m very happy and proud that of all the Arab countries, my work on the control of genetic diseases has been recognised. We were able to protect thousands of children from getting these diseases by educating the people, screening the carriers and counselling them. That, to me, is very satisfying,” she says. Family Ethic Dr Shaikha is a commanding personality who gives one the distinct impression that her time is not to be wasted. As she talks about her family and especially her upbringing, it’s clear that she has modelled her life on her father’s. Born into a family of pearl merchants, the late Mr Salim Al Arrayed had set his eyes on an education that would take him to India, where he earned his degree in law in 1919. Back in Bahrain in the 1930s, Mr Al Arrayed took up a role as an educator and became headmaster of the first school in Manama. In addition to running the family business, he later started a legal practice. His passion for education undiminished, Mr Al Arrayed ensured that all his children got the best education and excelled in their chosen fields. Dr Shaikha Salim Al Arrayed
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