The major challenges faced by medical teams working at motor sport events across the Middle East and in many other parts of the world will be examined at the region’s first seminar of its kind in Dubai this weekend.
More than 20 Chief Medical Officers (CMOs) and other medical center team members will assemble at the Grand Hyatt for an event designed to develop a co-ordinated regional approach to medicine in motor sport. They include delegates from Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, South Africa, Mozambique, Kenya, Nepal, Botswana and Georgia.
Supported by the FIA Institute for Motor Sport Safety and Sustainability, the two-day event is organized by the Automobile and Touring Club for the UAE (ATCUAE), and has been convened by its President, Dr. Mohammed Ben Sulayem, as part of an ongoing initiative in training, research and education.
For the last two years, the ATCUAE has been delivering FIA training to its counterparts in the Middle East, Africa, South America, and Europe, with an emphasis on safety for officials, competitors and spectators.
The work is now being extended to the medical field by the ATCUAE’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Sean Petherbridge, who will address this weekend’s seminar three days after returning from a training event for South American CMOs and medical teams in Bolivia.
“Thanks to the work of our training and education division, the Motorsport Knowledge Institute, we’re now recognized as one of the world’s leading national motor sport authorities with acknowledged expertise in these areas,” said Sulayem.
“Sean heads up a great medical team that caters to the needs of our motor sport events, from F1 down. Their expertise is now available as part of our training programs, and this weekend’s seminar allows us to share knowledge with our colleagues from across the region, and also to learn from them, as some have a longer involvement in motor sport than we do.”
At the seminar, Dr. Petherbridge will deliver a presentation on best practice for CMOs. Another presentation on best practice in the event medical center will be delivered by his wife Dr. Shereen Habib, the ATCUAE’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer. They oversee teams of doctors and medical staff who work on a voluntary basis at events including the F1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge.
“For the F1 Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit, we operate from a facility which is really like a mini hospital, with a staff of 80,” said Dr. Petherbridge. “For the Desert Challenge, we use a team of 20 and work from a port cabin.
“Every event has its own particular requirements, but for each event we have the same objective, which is to take the greatest care of competitors, officials and spectators. The seminar is a perfect opportunity for us to collaborate with our colleagues from many other parts of region and further afield, and to share our experience.”
Dr Habib said: “Motor sport medicine has changed dramatically in recent years, and for the better. Many more guidelines and regulations are now in place to make the sport safer. In the Middle East, we face unique challenges created by terrain and climate, such as heat exhaustion and dehydration, and there are similar problems in Africa and many other parts of the world. The seminar will allow us to learn from each other.”
