Australian Islamic Medical Association AIMA
By Mustafa Hamimi
On Friday 30 August 2024, the Queensland branch of the Australian Islamic Medical Association held the Inaugural meeting for AIMA Queensland. Over 100 healthcare practitioners attended the event, hosted at Michaels’s Oriental, Eight Mile Plains.
The event officially marked the formal transition from the Islamic Medical Association of Queensland (IMAQ) to unite and join The Australian Islamic Medical Association. IMAQ was first established 2010 and have been active in serving the Queensland community for over a decade. The founder of IMAQ, Dr Mohammed Iqbal Sultan, and the president of IMAQ, Dr Fatima Ashrafi, also attended the event.
The event began with short talk by Dr Salim Memon, AIMA QLD Vice President and a Medical director at The Gold Coast University Hospital, reminded the audience to always be connected with the Quran and stressed importance of unity, as described in Surah Al-Imran. The talk was followed by an address by Dr Abid Majid, who is the current AIMA QLD President and a General Practitioner, titled- Embracing the future: the journey of IMAQ to AIMA. Dr Abid discussed the past community programs and initiatives run by IMAQ and how uniting with AIMA will benefit healthcare practitioners and the wider society.
A keynote talk was delivered by Dr Ashraf Chehata, AIMA executive member and an orthopaedic surgeon in Victoria. Dr Chehata’s talk was titled- healing hearts: embracing spirituality and professional integrity in clinical practice. Dr Chehata explored the leadership lessons from Surah Al-Kahf and drew parallels to medical practice. The event ended with a networking dinner
The keynote talk was followed by shorts speeches from MIPS explaining the importance of professional medical indemnity insurance, and Doctors Health Queensland describing the mental health support services available for medical practitioners. The evening was concluded with a dinner and an opportunity to network with other Muslim healthcare workers.
