Bahrain Confidential interviews American Mission Hospital’s Corporate CEO, Dr. George Cheriyan.
For over a century, the American Mission Hospital has been providing care for the people in Bahrain. However, the hospital’s ideals still remain unchanged in over a hundred years of its service. The institution has proved to be an integral part of Bahrain’s healthcare industry especially amidst this pandemic. Just recently, we had the chance to speak to AMH’s Corporate CEO, Dr. George Cheriyan about the latest happenings as well as the much anticipated AMH Island Classic Charity Tournament.
The AMH Island Classic Charity Tournament is the hospital’s major fundraiser that was first instituted 23 years ago. The charity tournament primarily revolves around raising funds to modernize the hospital but every year, a portion of the proceeds are set aside for community outreach events.
Several outreach programs for those in need have been made possible through the Island Classic; this includes elderly care homes, children with special needs and more. Last year, the tournament had raised BD26,500 in cash and BD39,000 in kind, according to Dr. George Cheriyan.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, AMH has only managed to cover community outreach programs through online media this year. The programs were aimed to provide psychological support for adults and children coping with COVID-19 and isolating at home.
Nevertheless, AMH will still continue its much-anticipated Island Classic this year with all precautionary measures and guidelines observed. Dr. George says that they do not expect a drop in teams this year but rather an increase in participating teams; since this will be the first tournament since the start of the pandemic.
“The coronavirus crisis has made us more resolute and stronger, to remind ourselves that the human spirit is resilient and will overcome all challenges. The Island Classic embodies this spirit of playing the game for the greater good of quality healthcare for all, for which the American Mission Hospital exists”, Dr. George added.