Dr. Samer Makhoul, Consultant Psychiatrist

03/02/2026

"From Insight to Impact: Driving the future of Mental Health"

An amazing theme for yet another year for the landmark mental health conference in Abu Dhabi , under a different name the SIMC 2026(Sakina integrated mental health conference) after a successful 5 years under the name of Abu Dhabi integrated mental health conference

It is always a great honour and pleasure to be on the stage and co- chair the conference with the conference chair , Dr. Nahida Nayaz Ahmed, CMO , Sakina.

It is less than 5 days, so make sure to register if you have not yet registered

Register here:

https://lnkd.in/djVCC9wK

See you this Friday.

02/02/2026

It is back , for the 9th year ….
When we first started it , talking about schizophrenia specifically was unusual 11 years ago when we started but interest was so big and we repeated it each year , then COVID came and we had the first all day online conference in the region .

It gives me a great pleasure to invite you all on behalf of the conference chair , my dear friend , colleague and brother Dr. Medhat Elsabbahy to attend our 9th Abu Dhabi schizophrenia forum over the next 2 Wednesdays online with an amazing line of speakers including one of the founders and attending and speaking in each forum our dear Dr. Ahmed Shoka and a list of international speakers that are leading figure in mental health .
Please don’t miss it and register on http://scznforum.com

hashtag

24/01/2026

I am very pleased to share the publication of our new paper in BJPsych Journals Open (British Journal of Psychiatry), one of the leading international journals in psychiatry, published by Cambridge University Press & Assessment on behalf of the The Royal College of Psychiatrists. It is a high-quality, peer-reviewed international journal in psychiatry with a strong impact factor (~4.6) and a respected global presence in mental health research.

Together with my colleague Dr. Nawfel Ayad , Reem Neuroscience Centre and collaborators from United Arab Emirates University ( Dr Karim Abdel Aziz, Ban Abbas, Syed Javaid FRCPsych) , we reported the first real-world study globally to examine the long-term effectiveness and side-effects of intranasal esketamine in treatment-resistant depression across more than 100 treatment sessions.

🔹 Key strength of this study:
This is one of the very few studies worldwide – and the first from a Middle Eastern setting – to provide detailed long-term, real-world clinical data over an average of 2.5 years of treatment. Unlike most existing evidence that comes from controlled trials or Western populations, our findings are based on routine clinical practice in the UAE, addressing an important gap in the literature.
🔹 Why this matters:
Most psychiatric research traditionally originates from the US and Europe. This work demonstrates that high-quality, impactful psychiatric research can and should emerge from our region, reflecting our local populations, clinical realities, and healthcare systems. It is an important step toward strengthening the UAE’s contribution to global mental health research.
🔹 Study highlights:
• 85% of patients showed improvement in depressive symptoms
• 25% achieved remission
• Significant long-term improvement in anxiety symptoms
• Sustained benefits maintained over years
• Generally good tolerability, with important signals highlighting the need for ongoing long-term safety monitoring
🔹 In brief:
Our real-world cohort of patients with complex, highly comorbid treatment-resistant depression demonstrated sustained clinical improvement with long-term intranasal esketamine, supporting its potential role as a maintenance treatment while also emphasizing the importance of careful long-term monitoring.

Publishing this work in BJPsych Journals, a journal with a strong international reputation and impact in psychiatric research, is a meaningful milestone for our team. More importantly, it reflects our commitment to building a research culture locally, contributing robust data to the scientific community, and advancing evidence-based mental healthcare from the UAE to the world.
Grateful to all collaborators and to the patients whose clinical journeys made this work possible.

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bjpsych-open/article/longterm-effectiveness-and-sideeffects-of-intranasal-esketamine-in-treatmentresistant-depression-realworld-singlearm-study-of-over-100-sessions/C8212696ABA37FCB1D68FA185293CA7F

07/11/2025

"Gratitude"

I extend my sincere gratitude to everyone whose collective effort transformed our vision into reality at this year’s Masterclass. The outstanding success of this landmark conference serves as a distinguished testament to the power of teamwork, dedication, and collaboration.

First, thank to my co-chair Dr. Nahida Nayaz Ahmed, and the scientific committee Nawfel Ayad, Hamish McAllister-Williams, and Allan Young, and thanks to the amazing organising committee Medhat Elsabbahy, Joseph R. El-Khoury, Rana Abounakad, Nizar Hojaili, MD, MRCPsych, Fatema Almansouri, Najat Alzbeidi, Danilo Arnone, Dina Mohamed Aly El Gabry, Dr Nadyah Alayadhi, Farid Talih, Alaa Al-Sadadi, Karim Abdel Aziz and Ali AlGaratli.

thanks to the amazing and most probably the best speakers in the world in the field of psychiatry, and we should not forget that without the huge interest of the delegates , the meeting will have no meaning.

Also , Thanks to all the people who supported us , the organising company "Focus Gulf Conferences" and most improtatnly , thanks to God.

See you next October (2026) , the same place , the same meeting, and the same quality.

03/11/2025

Some of the best part of these meetings and events such as the Masterclass , is the photos you take with great people such as Nawfel Ayad, Medhat Elsabbahy and my amazing nurse Marimae Viterbo ( and amazing nursing team ). Wonderful 2 days at The Masterclass 2025

02/11/2025

What an Amazing second day of the Masterclass 2025 ,We have heard from the world mental health leaders including Allan Young, Hamish McAllister-Williams, Fiona Gaughran, John-Paul Taylor Mario F Juruena Sofia Pappa, Emad Farrag and Peter Hadad, and moderators Danilo Arnone, Najat Alzbeidi, Medhat Elsabbahy, Dr. Nahida Nayaz Ahmed, Nizar Hojaili, MD, MRCPsych, Nawfel Ayad, Nael Hasan, Dina Mohamed Aly El Gabry, Dr Nadyah Alayadhi, Fatema Almansouri and Karim Abdel Aziz.

01/11/2025

Highlight from the first day of the Masterclass 2025.

Attendees can look forward to cutting-edge research, expert-led sessions, and valuable insights from world-renowned professionals in the field of psychiatry.

We have heard from the world mental health leaders including Roos van Westrhenen , Nathan Huneke , Nicholas Meyer , and Peter Hadad


Thanks Dr. Nahida Nayaz Ahmed , Allan Young & Hamish McAllister-Williams for delivering an inspirational opening speech for this year Masterclass.

Thanks for the organising committee for delivering an amazing first day of the Masterclass

see you in day 2 of the Masterclass 2025 at the Conrad Dubai

01/11/2025

31/10/2025

Today, we are back again to the Conrad Dubai with this year "The Masterclass 2025" , the scientific committee ( Dr. Nahida Nayaz Ahmed . , Nawfel Ayad , Hamish McAllister-Williams and Allan Young ) are proud with this year programme , with no lecture to be missed , even the sponsored pharmaceutical symposium talks are nothing but exceptional.

This year exceptional speakers are

Mario F Juruena
Allan Young
Hamish McAllister-Williams
John-Paul Taylor
Fiona Gaughran
Nicholas Meyer
Roos van Westrhenen
Nathan Huneke
Hadad

See you at the Conrad Dubai later today

31/10/2025

Today, we are back again to the Conrad Dubai with this year “The Masterclass 2025” , the scientific committee ( Dr. Nahida Nayaz Ahmed . , Nawfel Ayad , Hamish McAllister-Williams and Allan Young ) are proud with this year programme , with no lecture to be missed , even the sponsored pharmaceutical symposium talks are nothing but exceptional.

This year exceptional speakers are

Mario F Juruena
Allan Young
Hamish McAllister-Williams
John-Paul Taylor
Fiona Gaughran
Nicholas Meyer
Roos van Westrhenen
Nathan Huneke
Hadad

See you at the Conrad Dubai later today

30/10/2025

Tomorrow, we will be joined by the amazing Dr. John-Paul Taylor, during the Masterclass 2025 with an amazing lecture focusing on latest treatment in Alzheimer and dementia

make sure you join us at the Masterclass 2025 at the Conrad Dubai

28/10/2025

in less than 3 days, we will be joined by the amazing Prof. Peter Hadad , starting the Masterclass 2025 with an amazing lecture focusing on the history of psychopharmacology.

make sure you join us at the Masterclass 2025 at the Conrad Dubai