Doha, Qatar: The Qatar Precision Health Institute (QPHI) is setting its sights on a bold transformation to make precision health part of routine care for people in Qatar over the next decade. This vision marks a defining shift toward a more personalised, preventive, and data-driven health system that reflects the country's growing investment in science and innovation.

“Our priority is to make precision health part of everyday care,” said Acting Director of the Qatar Genome Program at QPHI, Dr. Radja Badji, in an interview with The Peninsula.

“We will start where Qatar's needs are greatest and show measurable gains in clinical care, from safer prescribing and earlier diagnosis to better outcomes,” she added.

Dr. Badji outlined a vision that puts patients and prevention at the centre of Qatar's health system, blending genetics, lifestyle insights, and clinical data to deliver more personalised care.“We aim to shift the system upstream by weaving genetics and lifestyle insights into routine checkups and targeted programs, so prevention becomes personal,” she said.

At the heart of this strategy lies a strong commitment to privacy, trust, and local capacity-building.“All of this rests on public trust, by promoting gold-standard privacy, responsible data governance, and real support for participants,” said Dr. Badji.“To sustain impact, we will grow local talent by training clinicians and scientists, deepening collaborations, and partnering with industry without compromising public benefit.”

According to Dr. Badji, QPHI plays a pivotal role in advancing Qatar National Vision 2030 and the National Health Strategy, both of which emphasise innovation, sustainability, and population well-being.

“QPHI is one of the engines to get us there,” she said.“We turn cutting-edge science, like genomics and data science, into better prevention, earlier diagnosis, and safer treatments. In simple terms, we help the country move from 'one-size-fits-all' care to truly precision health.”

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Dr. Badji described QPHI's approach as a“tight feedback loop” between research and practice.“We learn from large-scale cohort data, including health records, genomics, lifestyle and then test what is promising in small, well-designed pilots inside the health system,” she said.

“When a pilot clearly improves safety or outcomes, we scale it with our clinical partners. It's a living cycle: science serving patients, and patient outcomes sharpening the science.”

One of the most promising frontiers is pharmacogenomics, which tailors drug prescriptions based on a patient's genetic profile.“Working with cardiologists and pharmacists, we use genetic insights to inform prescriptions of key cardiovascular medicines such as clopidogrel, warfarin, and statins,” said Dr. Badji.“The aim is to ensure each patient gets the right drug at the right dose, with less trial and error.”

She added that QPHI plans to integrate pharmacogenomic decision support directly into electronic medical records so that“information appears precisely when needed.” With genomics comes responsibility, especially in how data are collected, used, and shared.

Dr. Badji emphasised QPHI's rigorous ethical framework.“We start with informed, granular consent in clear, everyday language,” she said.“Participants can choose what they want to share and learn, and they can change those choices later. We keep data in-country under strict governance, with oversight by ethics committees.”

QPHI's Return of Genomic Information programme also reflects this participant-first approach.“We only return findings that can change care now in Qatar, selected gene results with available screening or prevention, and pharmacogenomic results that guide safer prescribing,” Dr. Badji said.“Results are confirmed in accredited labs, explained by genetic counsellors, and linked to the right clinical follow-up.”

Recruitment for QPHI's national cohort is community-based and voluntary.“We meet people where they are at clinics, universities, workplaces, and outreach events,” said Dr. Badji.“Trust starts with plain-language consent and continues with transparent communication, real support, and clear guidance about how data are protected and used.”

Looking ahead, QPHI also aims to strengthen precision health leadership across the MENA region. Dr. Badji highlighted Tanawwo, a knowledge-sharing network whose name means“diversity,” as a cornerstone of that effort.

“Through Tanawwo, we're bringing together ministries, hospitals, and universities to share expertise and co-design solutions,” she said.“Our joint work focuses on regional priorities like cardiovascular risk, diabetes, rare diseases, and pharmacogenomics, so science translates into safer prescribing and better prevention for everyone.”

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