Dr. Ruba Benini

Dr. Ruba Benini is a Pediatric Neurologist and Epileptologist, currently serving as Medical Director of the Neurodiagnostic Laboratory and Program Director of the Pediatric Neurology Fellowship at Sidra Medicine. She is also an Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine–Qatar.

Dr. Benini is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Canada (FRCPC). She earned her PhD in Neuroscience from the Montreal Neurological Institute in 2006 and her medical degree from McGill University in 2008. She completed her pediatric neurology residency at McGill University Health Center in 2014 and a fellowship in Pediatric Epilepsy at Ste. Justine Hospital in 2016.

Before joining Sidra Medicine in 2017, Dr. Benini practiced at Montreal Children's Hospital and King Fahad Medical City in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Her research focuses on the genetics of pediatric epilepsy, aiming to improve diagnosis and treatment outcomes for affected children.

Dr. Farouq Thabet

Dr. Farouq Thabet is an Attending Pediatric Neurologist at Sidra Medicine and an Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar. Before joining Sidra. Dr. Thabet worked as a Consultant Pediatric Neurologist at Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines, Iowa, USA. He is an adjunct Assistant Professor of Specialty Medicine at Des Moines University in Iowa, USA. He is American Board-certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and the American Board of Pediatrics. Dr. Thabet is a member of the American Academy of Neurology and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Dr. Husam Kayyali

Dr. Husam Kayyali is the Chief of the Pediatric Neurology Division at Sidra Medicine. He is also serving as the Director of the Comprehensive Epilepsy Program at Sidra Medicine. Dr. Kayyali is Board Certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in Pediatric Neurology, Clinical Neurophysiology, and Epilepsy. Before joining Sidra Medicine, Dr. Kayyali was an Assistant Professor of Pediatric Neurology at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and he co-established the Comprehensive Epilepsy Center at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Missouri. Then he moved to King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Saudi Arabia, where he served as the Head of the Pediatric Neurology Section and the Director of the Pediatric Neurology Fellowship Program.

Dr. Ian Pople

Dr. Ian Pople has served as Chief of Neurosurgery at Sidra Medicine since September 2018. He has led the development of a safe, sustainable emergency neurosurgery service for children in Qatar and established advanced surgical programs in pediatric epilepsy and lower limb spasticity. Before joining Sidra, Dr. Pople was Senior Pediatric Neurosurgeon at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children in the UK, where he led epilepsy surgery and SDR services. He graduated from Sheffield University and completed neurosurgical training in Leeds, London (Great Ormond Street Hospital), and Bristol, followed by a fellowship at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, USA. His clinical interests include complex hydrocephalus, neuro-endoscopy, brain tumors, and tethered spinal cord. Dr. Pople has performed over 180 SDR procedures and more than 2,000 pediatric neurosurgical operations. He has also conducted innovative research on hydrocephalus in premature infants, which he plans to continue in Qatar.

Dr. Khaled Zamel

Dr. Khaled Zamel is a Pediatric Neurologist specializing in Epileptology and Clinical Neurophysiology. Born and educated in Alexandria, Egypt, he earned his medical degree from Alexandria University. He completed his residency in pediatric and child neurology and a fellowship in clinical neurophysiology and epilepsy at the State University of New York. Dr. Zamel holds dual American Board certifications in child neurology and clinical neurophysiology.

In January 2021, he became Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology and Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine–Qatar. From 2014, he served as Chief of Child Neurology and Senior Attending at Sidra Medicine in Doha. Before that, he spent 14 years as an epileptologist and neurophysiologist at Ohio State University and Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

Dr. Zamel established a pioneering Pediatric Neurology and Epilepsy unit in the UAE and received the Teacher of the Year Award at Ohio State University. He has numerous peer-reviewed publications and co-authored a textbook on intraoperative neurophysiologic monitoring.

Dr. Khalid Ibrahim

Dr. Khalid Omer Ibrahim, CCST, MD, FRCP, FRCPCH, MBBS, MRCP, is a Senior Attending Pediatric Neurologist at Sidra Medicine and Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar. Before joining Sidra Medicine, Dr. Ibrahim served as the Chief of the Pediatric Neurology Division at Hamad Hospital. He was also the former Pediatric Neurology Fellowship Program Director at Hamad Hospital. Former Clinical Lead for Epilepsy Service in North London, UK. Former Member of the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN)

Dr. Mahmoud Fawzi

Dr. Mahmoud Fawzi is a senior attending physician in pediatric neurology at Sidra Medicine and Hamad Hospital. He also serves as an assistant professor at Weill Cornell Medicine–Qatar. Previously, Dr. Mahmoud worked as a consultant in pediatric neurology at Hamad Hospital from 2006 until 2017. He then joined Sidra Medicine as a senior attending physician in pediatric neurology. He specializes in treating patients with muscle disease, multiple sclerosis, and tuberous sclerosis. He got research grants in congenital brain anomalies and muscle diseases, hereditary spastic paraplegia and microcephaly, and spinal muscular atrophy. He is widely published and has lectured at local and international conferences. Dr. Fawzi has extensive experience in pediatric neurology since 1995. He has more than 50 publications in international journals.

Dr. Rana Al Shami

Dr. Rana Al Shami has been an Attending Physician in the Pediatric Neurology Division at Sidra Medicine since 2017. She is a member of the pediatric neurology team and a faculty member for the neurology fellowship program in Sidra, together with clinical faculty at Qatar University. Dr. Rana is a member of the pediatric neurology team, covering outpatient clinics (total of 6 clinics/week) during the clinic week, covering all consultations from the Sidra inpatient and ED department during on-call duty service. Dr. Rana takes care of PICU /NICU neurology cases while covering intensive care service week according to Sidra Medicine’s schedule in the department, reporting the EEG record for patients referred for EEG. Dr. Rana is a faculty member for the neurology fellowship program in Sidra, responsible for scheduled didactic teaching of the pediatric neurology fellows.

Dr. Wagdy Al-Kadasi

Dr. Wagdy Mohammed Al-Kadasi, MBBS, FRCS(Eng), FEBNS, ABNS, JBNS, Paediatric Neurosurgery Specialist, Sidra Medicine, Qatar After earning his medical degree (MBBS) from Sana'a University in 2009, Dr. Al-Kadasi completed his neurosurgery residency at the Royal Medical Services in Jordan, with training at King Hussein Cancer Center. Following completion of the Jordanian Board of Neurosurgery (JBNS) and the Arab Board of Neurosurgery (ABNS) certifications; he served as an assistant-consultant neurosurgeon at King Fahd Specialist Hospital in Dammam, Saudi Arabia before joining Sidra Medicine as a specialist in neurosurgery in 2020, he later completed a pediatric neurosurgery fellowship at Sidra Medicine. Dr. Al-Kadasi further honed his expertise through rigorous training and certifications, including fellowships from the Royal College of Surgeons of England (FRCS) and the European Board of Neurological Surgery (FEBNS). With over a decade of experience, Dr. Al-Kadasi is an active researcher and educator, involved in peer reviewing for neurosurgical journals, has published several clinical studies and case reports, and has presented at national and international conferences.

Dr. Wesam Khalafallah

Dr. Wesam Khalafallah worked at Sidra Medicine as a Neurosurgery Hospitalist since March 2019, and then he completed two years of Pediatric Neurosurgery Fellowship in June 2023. He completed his residency training in Neurosurgery at Jordan University Hospital, and then he got his Jordanian Board of Neurosurgery in 2018, followed by the Arab Board of Neurosurgery in 2019. Dr. Khalafallah received his medical degree in Medicine from Cairo University, Egypt. Dr. Khalafallah was a speaker at multiple pediatric conferences, and his clinical interests include hydrocephalus and craniofacial correction surgeries.

Jenny Sacree

Jenny Sacree. With more than 40 years of neuroscience experience, Jenny is presently the CNL for Movement disorders, rehabilitation medicine, and spines. She has been in Sidra Medicine for 5 years, completing the rest of her neuroscience experience in Bristol, UK. She is passionate about education and teaches neuroscience with the ISPN around the world.

Dr. Amena Almotawaa

Dr. Amena, MD, is a graduate of the Arabian Gulf University School of Medicine in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Dr. Amena trained at the Hamad General Hospital, where she completed her internship and then completed her residency in the pediatric department. During her residency, she was able to provide high-quality care and consultation that resulted in the overall improvement in department patient satisfaction. Afterward, she completed a fellowship in pediatric neurology at Hamad General Hospital in the pediatric department. Dr. Amena focused on children with neurological disorders and reevaluated several methods of therapy management. Dr. Amena has been practicing in the Department of Pediatric Neurology at Hamad General Hospital in Qatar since 2007, one of the major governmental hospitals in Qatar. Her practice focuses on children with neurological disorders such as epilepsy, developmental delay, muscle disease, and headaches. In addition to her role as a doctor and competency committee faculty member, Dr.

Issam Kadoura

BSN
Clinical Nurse Leader – Neurology and General Pediatric Clinic, Sidra Medicine

Issam Kadoura is a dedicated Clinical Nurse Leader at the Neurology and General Pediatric Clinic at Sidra Medicine, where he has been contributing since 2017. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) from Jordan University of Science and Technology, earned between 1999 and 2003.

Issam began his nursing career at Jordan Hospital as a Registered Nurse, where he was promoted to Charge Nurse, serving from 2003 to 2007. In 2007, he joined King Fahad Medical City’s Neuroscience Center ward as a Staff Nurse and was later appointed Charge Nurse of the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit in 2009. His leadership and clinical expertise led to his promotion as Epilepsy Nurse Coordinator from 2012 to 2017. In this role, Issam was instrumental in developing and leading specialized epilepsy care programs, clinical leadership, and multidisciplinary care coordination.

Dr. Tena Rosser

Dr. Tena Rosser, M.D.is an Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology and Pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) which is affiliated with Keck Medicine of University of Southern California. She is the director of the CHLA Children’s Tumor Foundation (CTF)-endorsed Neurofibromatosis Clinic which opened in 2005 and sees over 500 patients per year. She is a long-standing and active member of the CTF’s Clinical Care Advisory Board. In addition, she is the 2015 recipient of the CTF’s Humanitarian Award and the 2022 Make NF Visible Award. Dr. Rosser serves as the Los Angeles site Principal Investigator for the U.S. Army Department of Defense NF Clinical Trials Consortium (NFCTC) which coordinates multi-center clinical trials for individuals with NF1 and Schwannomatosis. She is a member of the DOD NFCTC Quality of Life and Neurocognitive Committees. She is a collaborator on several translational NF1 and Schwannomatosis projects with researchers across the country.

Dr. Beth Wells

Elizabeth M. Wells, MD, MHS is the senior vice president for the Neuroscience and Behavioral Medicine Center overseeing the programmatic, academic and financial aspects of the Center's 8 divisions and 2 institutes. She is internationally known for advancing care for complex pediatric neuro-inflammatory disorders. Dr. Wells graduated from Harvard & Radcliffe Colleges with a concentration in Mind/Brain/Behavior and from the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. She was an Intramural Research Training Award (IRTA) fellow at the National Institutes of Health and holds a Master's in Health Sciences from the NIH/Duke Clinical Research Training Program. Dr. Wells is the past-president of the Children's National Hospital Medical Staff and the Washington Clinico-Pathological Society. She lives with her husband and three children in Washington, D.C.

Dr. Rehab Al Saleh

Dr. Rehab Ali Alsaleh is a Senior Attending in Genetics and Genomic Medicine at Sidra Medicine and Senior Consultant in Adult Clinical Genetics at Hamad Medical Corporation in Doha, Qatar. She earned her medical degree from King Abdul-Aziz University in Jeddah and completed her pediatric residency and fellowship in Clinical and Metabolic Genetics at Hamad Medical Corporation. With over two decades of experience, Dr. Alsaleh has played a pivotal role in advancing genetic medicine in Qatar. Her research focuses on autosomal recessive intellectual disabilities, white matter diseases, and inborn errors of metabolism, with multiple peer-reviewed publications and leadership roles in national and international collaborative studies. Dr. Alsaleh has been awarded several competitive research grants. Her dedication to clinical care, research, and education continues to shape the field of genetics in the Middle East.

Dr. Younes Mokrab

Prof. Younes Mokrab is Principal Investigator, Head of Population Genomics Medicine, and Director of the Neuroscience Research Program at Sidra Medicine. He also holds adjunct academic positions at Weill Cornell Medicine and Qatar University. Prof. Mokrab obtained a BSc in Genetics from the University of Sheffield (2003) and a PhD in Bioinformatics from Prof. Tom Blundell’s lab at the University of Cambridge (2007), followed by a postdoctoral fellowship on modelling ion channelopathies with Prof. Mark Sansom at the University of Oxford (2010). He then moved to the pharmaceutical industry, first at Lonza Biologics in in silico biopharmaceutical engineering and then at Eli Lilly leading early-stage neuropsychiatry drug discovery. Since joining Sidra in 2015, he has helped establish research programs in population and medical genetics, co-founded the Qatar Genome Program Research Consortium, and built collaborations with multiple international consortia. His lab’s expertise spans long-read sequencing, multiomics, data science, and large-scale genome studies. He has co-authored over 60 papers, including in Nature and Cell, and has received numerous grants and awards.

Dr. Baker Alzidaneen

Dr. Baker A. Alzidaneen is a renowned neurosurgeon with over 13 years of experience in the field. He specializes in Pediatric brain and spine surgeries and is participating in numerous research papers in adult along with pediatric neurosurgery .