#ImmigrationMatters in Calgary, Alberta – Saving lives and sharing medical knowledge

#ImmigrationMatters in Calgary, Alberta

Known to his patients as a compassionate and dedicated physician, Dr. Khorshid Mohammad has also invented several technologies that are helping nurses and doctors save infants’ lives.

Saving lives and sharing medical knowledge

Sept 16, 2024

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Dr. Khorshid Mohammad’s inventions have helped thousands around the world. He’s dedicated to saving young lives, and that’s what he does every day in Calgary.

A Kurd who grew up in northeastern Syria, Dr. Mohammad is a highly specialized doctor focusing on newborns who need special care. Along with conducting medical research and caring for patients at Alberta Health Services, he teaches and mentors medical students at the University of Calgary.

After moving to Canada in 2008, Dr. Mohammad started a newborn neurological intensive care program at the Alberta Children’s Hospital in Calgary. The first of its kind in Canada when it opened, the program offers round-the-clock monitoring for infants at risk of seizures, among other services. Thanks to this program, doctors can quickly spot and treat seizures, giving babies the best chance of recovery.

Dr. Mohammad has also developed new medical technologies to help newborns with serious neurological issues. These devices let clinicians practise before performing delicate imaging procedures on patients. Some services, such as radiology, aren’t available 24 hours a day in most hospitals. So, Dr. Mohammad’s idea was to teach the bedside medical staff who regularly care for newborns to handle the procedures themselves, allowing babies with urgent needs to be diagnosed and treated promptly.

“Dr. Mohammad gave me hope when no one else did. He was always there to remind me not to give up.”

Yulia Foisy, a parent of one of Dr. Mohammad’s patients

Even though his inventions are known worldwide, Dr. Mohammad remains devoted to his patients and community.

“My main responsibilities are my patients and their families, and related to that, my students, colleagues and nurses,” he says. “I enjoy taking care of each individual patient as much as I enjoy the bigger picture and the impact of my research.”

Yulia Foisy saw Dr. Mohammad’s dedication first-hand when her daughter developed a serious brain bleed after being born at just 23 weeks. Dr. Mohammad was a crucial support during the 5 months her daughter spent in the Neonatal Intensive Care unit.

“He just kind of adopted me,” she says. “I can't remember much of that time. I just remember him because he treated me like I was a person.”

Dr. Alixe Howlett, a neonatologist who was Dr. Mohammad’s training program director, describes him as thoughtful, caring and generous. She’s noticed that he feels a strong sense of responsibility to give back to Canada. When the COVID-19 pandemic began and schools closed, he organized a drive to collect laptops for Calgary kids who couldn’t afford them.

According to Dr. Howlett, what drives Dr. Mohammad every day is this: “How can I help patients? How can I help trainees and peers do as well as I have?”

Dr. Mohammad used his own money to kick-start many of his research projects, and he chooses not to patent his inventions because he wants everyone to be able to use or reproduce them.

“Making them available to everyone is the whole point,” he says.

Because of this generous approach, Dr. Mohammad’s technologies have helped thousands of patients—including not just his own but also those of other doctors across Canada and around the world.