Invited Speakers
Distinguished psychiatrists from across the Arab world and the international community.
Professor Elisa Brietzke
Professor of Psychiatry, Queen's University, Canada
Internationally recognised academic psychiatrist specialising in mood disorders, biological and metabolic psychiatry. She leads translational research on the biological mechanisms of mood disorders: inflammation, neuroplasticity, brain energetics and nutritional/metabolic approaches, with 300+ peer-reviewed publications, an h-index above 80 and more than 24,000 citations.
Professor Claudio Soares
Professor of Psychiatry, Queen's University, Canada
Full Professor and former Chair of Psychiatry at Queen's University; inaugural Director of the Centre for Psychedelics Health and Research, Executive Lead of CAN-BIND and Regional Lead for Mental Health & Addictions at Ontario Health East. Expert in women's mood and anxiety disorders, perinatal psychiatry and psychedelics, with 200+ publications in JAMA, Nature and the American Journal of Psychiatry.
Professor Gustavo H. Vázquez
Professor of Psychiatry, Queen's University, Canada
Clinician–scientist specialising in treatment-resistant mood disorders and interventional psychiatry, including IV ketamine, intranasal esketamine, ECT and rTMS. He leads large database-driven studies in tertiary mood-disorder populations and biomarker research within the Canadian Biomarker Integration Network in Depression (CAN-BIND).
Professor Tarek Qassem
Clinical Academic Group Lead, Mental Health of Older Adults · Maudsley Health, Al Amal Hospital, UAE
UK-trained consultant in old-age psychiatry and Adjunct Clinical Professor at Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Dubai Medical College. He has led neurocognitive services and research-and-innovation committees, with publications in the British Journal of Psychiatry and The BMJ.
Assistant Professor Zerak Al-Salihy
Senior Consultant Old Age Psychiatrist, Hamad Medical Corporation; Weill Cornell Medicine–Qatar
UK Certificate of Completion of Training in Old Age Psychiatry. He leads a multidisciplinary liaison-psychiatry team, serves as Fellowship Program Director, and has contributed to dementia clinical guidelines and the Global Dementia Observatory.
Dr. Deemah Al-Ateeq
Consultant & Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, KSA
Consultant psychiatrist subspecialising in women's mental health, with a Fellowship from McGill University and 40+ peer-reviewed publications. She heads the Standing Committee for Scientific Research and Publication at the Saudi Psychiatric Association.
Dr. Maha Al Ali
Consultant Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist, Al Jalila Children's Specialty Hospital, Dubai; Board Member, ESCAM
Emirati consultant specialising in neurodevelopmental, anxiety and mood disorders. She was recognised with the Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for an innovative Autism Assessment Pathway and is active in medical education and public mental-health advocacy.
Dr. Zainab Imam
Division Chief, Women's Mental Health, Sidra Medicine, Qatar
Adult and perinatal psychiatrist with over 35 years in medicine, specialising in prenatal and postnatal mood disorders, psychosis and complex medication management. She leads global maternal mental-health initiatives, including World Maternal Mental Health Day.
Dr. Najat Alzbeidi
Consultant Psychiatrist, Sakina · Abu Dhabi Healthcare Company (SEHA), UAE
Expertise in interventional psychiatry, mood disorders, women's mental health and neuromodulation. She holds a fellowship in mood disorders from Queen's University and rTMS certification from the University of Toronto, and is a passionate advocate for women's mental health.