Professor Ian Bowmer was elected president of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in February, 2019. He was the Executive Director and CEO of the Medical Council of Canada (MCC) for eleven years, retiring in October 2018. An internist, infectious disease specialist and HIV care provider and researcher for 40 years; he is Professor Emeritus and the former Dean of Medicine at the Faculty of Medicine, Memorial University Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.

In 1991, Dr. Bowmer was elected President of the MCC. He was also appointed to the Council of the RCPSC, where he sat as Chair of the Accreditation and Credential Committees. In 1994, he became the first Chair of the Board of the new regional Community Health St. John’s Region. This board amalgamated five separate community services into one institution. He was appointed as one of the original non-government members of the Health Council of Canada in 2004 and became its Vice-Chair from 2007 until July 2010.

Dr. Bowmer is the recipient of several honours. He received Canada’s 125th Confederation Medal. In 2003, he was elected to the Royal College of Physicians, London. That same year, he received the MCC’s Dr. Louis Levasseur Award for outstanding contributions to the mission and vision of the MCC. He is a recipient of the Ronald V. Christie Award from the Canadian Association of Professors of Medicine for outstanding contribution to academic medicine in Canada and in 2012, the Royal College awarded him the James H. Graham Award for merit, in recognition of achievements reflecting the aims and objectives of the College. He is also a recipient of Senate 150th year anniversary medal for contributions to the community.

Tamar Sanikidze has more than 25 years of professional experience. Since 1998, Ms. Sanikidze has held various executive positions in private, non-governmental, international and public institutions. Since 2008, she has been actively involved in the field of education and has provided administrative, academic and consultation services to various education institutions. She has extensive experience in higher education quality assurance systems management.

From 2012 to 2013, Ms. Sanikidze acted as the First Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Georgia and later, during 2013 to 2016, as Minister of Education and Science of Georgia. From July 2016 to September 2018, she held the position of Director of the National Center for Educational Quality Enhancement (NCEQE) in Georgia. Since 2017, she has been engaged in development of higher education systems as a Higher Education Reform Expert of the Erasmus+ programme. In November 2018, she became a member of the International Institute for Education Policy Planning and Management (EPPM) think tank organisation.

Since June 2020, Ms. Sanikidze has led the World Bank-funded project Innovation, Inclusion and Quality (I2Q) that supports the implementation of the national education system reform agenda.

Ms. Sanikidze attained a doctoral degree for her research on automated systems for academic programs development and evaluation. She holds a master’s degree in Public Administration, a bachelor’s degree in English Language and Literature and has a background in financial management (ACCA).

Wambui Wang’ombe was Associate Vice President for Operations with the American Osteopathic Association Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (AOA COCA) and has worked in medical accreditation for 6 years. In her role, Wambui has served as Team Secretary on over 10 accreditation visits to different osteopathic medical schools across the United States. Her roles have included being responsible for the daily operations of the accreditation department, the review of submitted self-study reports, developing, and monitoring the department budget, supporting the AOA COCA committees, and supervising staff. She has a Bachelor of Arts from the Northern Illinois University and in recent years has been involved in the completion of a petition to the U.S. Department of Education and an application to the World Federation for Medical Education.

Dr. Shadi Hamouri is a Professor of Thoracic Surgery at the Faculty of Medicine/ Jordan University of Science and Technology (FMJUST). Currently, he has been working as Vice President for Health Sciences Faculties Affairs at Al-Balqa Applied University (BAU)/Jordan since September 2024, alongside his role as a Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at (BAU) (Secondment) since September 2022. He also serves as a Senior Consultant of Thoracic Surgery at King Abdullah University Hospital and Al-Salt Governmental New Hospital. His journey began with an MBBS degree from FMJUST in 1998, followed by general surgery training at FMJUST and the American University of Beirut (AUB)/Lebanon. He then embarked on a unique path, pursuing General Thoracic Surgery Training at the University of Göttingen Teaching Hospital/ “East Bremen Hospital” and the University of Duisburg-Essen Teaching Hospital/ “Protestant Hospital in Herne,” Germany.

Dr. Hamouri’s clinical practice is a testament to his expertise and dedication. After completing his thoracic surgery training, he joined the Faculty of Medicine at JUST in 2009 and has been practicing in the Department of Surgery since then. His work extends beyond the university, as he has also served as a Part-time Assistant Professor at Hashemite University (2010-2017) and a Part-time Associate Professor at the University of Jordan (2018-2019). Dr. Hamouri has contributed to more than sixty publications in which he has primarily authored or has co-authorships in internationally prestigious journals and cardiothoracic surgery book chapters. He is an active member of many national, regional, and international boards of directors, advisory boards, groups, bodies, and societies. His clinical practice focuses on treating benign and malignant thoracic surgical disorders using minimally invasive surgical techniques, a testament to his innovative approach and dedication to patient care.

Dr. Hamouri’s commitment to medical education is a testament to his passion and dedication. His career includes various academic and administrative university posts, such as the Faculty of Medicine Dean’s Assistant (2014-2016), Chairman of the General Surgery Department (2016-2018), and Vice Dean for Clinical Affairs at the Faculty of Medicine (2018-2020), Vice Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies (2020-2022) at Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST). His passion for medical education is evident in his work on undergraduate “MD degree curriculum” development and assessment using objective structured clinical examinations (OSCE) and competency-based assessment. He also brings his experience in quality assurance and accreditation of quality assurance agencies and medical schools to his current role as an assessor at the World Federation for Medical Education (WFME).

Mokshada Sharma joined the staff of WFME in July 2021, as part of the team working on the World Directory of Medical Schools.

She is a medical doctor trained in Mumbai India, also a Masters of Public Health candidate at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.  She was elected as the IFMSA (International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations) Regional Director for Asia Pacific in 2017-18, which gave her the opportunity to work with national organisations in countries within the Asia Pacific Region in areas such as medical education, human resources for health, youth participation in legislative decisions, capacity building, and global health issues such as antimicrobial resistance.

She at times acts as a Team Secretary for WFME Recognition Visits.

Jana Cohlová joined WFME in 2021. Her role is in the management of the WFME Recognition Programme, and also includes support for the Risk Committee and the WFME office. She sometimes joins the WFME Recognition Teams.

She studied at the University of Economics, Prague, Czech Republic, majoring in International Trade. Before joining WFME, she worked for the Social Health Institute, Palacký University Olomouc, as a project associate. She has also been running her own freelance translation and interpreting business for almost 20 years.

She is based in the Czech Republic.