Press release: QRDI Funds New 3-Year Project to Explore Female Fertility Preservation

The Qatar Research, Development, and Innovation (QRDI) Council has awarded funding for a new three-year research project exploring female fertility preservation in Qatar.

Funded through the Academic Research Grant (ARG), the project brings together a multidisciplinary collaboration between the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies (DIGS), Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), and Yale University.

The study will examine fertility preservation through sociological, ethical, medical, and cultural lenses, with a focus on family, faith, and lived experiences, contributing evidence to inform policy, practice, and public dialogue in Qatar and beyond.

The interdisciplinary research team, comprising sociology, anthropology, mental health, Islamic bioethics, and fertility experts, will leverage community partnerships within the health sector to conduct in-depth interviews with fertility experts and Qatari and non-Qatari patients seeking fertility preservation treatment in public and private healthcare facilities.

Additionally, two community forums with representation from different stakeholders will support results validation, and community engagement in recommendations and interventions while serving knowledge mobilization, outreach, and capacity building. Data analysis will combine thematic, narrative, and grounded theory analyses, which will be cross-validated with data analysis software, core team members' complementary angles, and community forum discussions and recommendations. Reporting will make results relevant and actionable for academics, practitioners, policymakers, and patients.

The impacts will enhance fertility preservation practices, support population and gender policies, bridge ethical assumptions with empirical data, build healthcare capacity, and strengthen Qatar's global leadership in reproductive health and bioethics.

The project is relevant to the QRDI priority areas “Society”–by reinforcing “the nation’s ability to address current and future needs of all communities in Qatar” and “Health”–by enhancing “clinical care outcomes,” ultimately aligning with Qatar National Vision 2030's focus on human and social development through supporting the healthcare system and “bolstering women’s role in society and empowering them to be active community members.

The novelty of the project stems from its comprehensive interdisciplinary methodology, which aims to advocate for and provide recommendations and a blueprint for implementing wraparound approaches to healthcare.

Wraparound processes entail adopting a “collaborative, team-based approach to service and support planning” (VanDenBerg, Bruns & Burchard 2003), engaging various stakeholders such as patients, their families, and natural and social support groups. This may include a holistic approach to fertility assessments, individualized care plans, multidisciplinary teams comprising medical, mental health, and social care professionals, coordinated service delivery, and a focus on patient-centered care.