Senior orthotist prosthetist Syed Irtaza Amir Hassan Kazmi has received the Middle East Pediatric Orthopaedic Society’s 2026 Allied Health Fellowship Award.
The recognition was presented during the 13th Middle East Pediatric Orthopedic Conference, held from September 9–11 at the Millennium Resort Salalah in Oman.
Kazmi, who works at Al Jalila Children’s Hospital in Dubai, described receiving the award as an honour and said it had strengthened his commitment to continuous learning and advancing orthotic and prosthetic care.
Writing on his LinkedIn profile, he thanked the clinicians and rehabilitation professionals who supported his professional development, as well as Orthofix and the MEPOS 2026 organising committee.
Recognition for allied health contribution
The fellowship places additional focus on the contribution of orthotists, prosthetists and other allied health professionals within paediatric orthopaedic services.
Children with musculoskeletal, neurological and congenital conditions frequently require coordinated care involving paediatric orthopaedic surgeons, prosthetists and orthotists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, gait laboratory specialists and rehabilitation physicians.
Orthotists and prosthetists translate surgical and rehabilitation objectives into individually designed devices. Their clinical decisions can influence alignment, joint control, mobility, comfort, energy expenditure and a child’s ability to participate in school and family life.
For children who are still growing, treatment is rarely static. Orthoses and prostheses must be reviewed and replaced as the child grows, while prescriptions may change following surgery, changes in muscle tone or the development of new functional goals.
Recognition of an orthotist prosthetist through a paediatric orthopaedic fellowship therefore reflects the increasingly multidisciplinary nature of children’s mobility care.
Mentorship at Al Jalila Children’s Hospital
Kazmi expressed particular appreciation to Professor Sattar Alshryda, consultant paediatric orthopaedic surgeon and clinical head of trauma and orthopaedic surgery at Al Jalila Children’s Hospital.
He also thanked Dr Ibrar Majid, consultant paediatric orthopaedic surgeon at Al Jalila Children’s Hospital and chair of paediatrics at Dubai Health, and Dr Jennifer Walsh, director of the hospital’s gait laboratory.
Kazmi credited their guidance, encouragement and continued support with helping him achieve the fellowship. He also acknowledged the wider orthopaedic and rehabilitation team at Al Jalila Children’s Hospital.
The Dubai Health paediatric orthopaedic service provides care for children and adolescents with conditions affecting bones, joints, muscles and tendons. Its work includes the management of scoliosis, trauma and developmental conditions such as cerebral palsy, supported by an integrated paediatric rehabilitation team.
The involvement of a gait laboratory adds objective movement analysis to this multidisciplinary model. Three-dimensional gait analysis can help teams understand how a child walks, identify biomechanical problems and evaluate the effects of surgery, therapy, orthoses or other interventions.
MEPOS brings clinical disciplines together
MEPOS 2026 was organised jointly with the 5th Khareef Dhofar Military Orthopedic Conference. The programme brought together paediatric orthopaedic surgeons, trauma specialists, allied health professionals, researchers, residents and fellows.
Scientific topics included developmental dysplasia of the hip, paediatric hip reconstruction, trauma, pelvic and femoral osteotomies, paediatric spinal deformity, neuromuscular scoliosis, guided growth, limb deformity correction and gait analysis.
The official conference programme also included a dedicated allied health stream, recognising that successful paediatric orthopaedic treatment depends on more than surgery.
MEPOS offered travelling fellowship opportunities to doctors and allied health professionals with substantial paediatric practices. The society stated that its 2026 fellowships supported recipients with economy airfare, accommodation and reimbursement of local expenses, helping practitioners participate in regional education and professional exchange.
Such opportunities can be particularly valuable for prosthetists and orthotists, whose representation at predominantly surgical conferences is sometimes limited despite their central role in conservative treatment, post-operative management and long-term mobility.
Contribution to the wider O&P profession
In addition to his clinical work in Dubai, Kazmi has contributed to professional education and communication within Pakistan’s orthotics and prosthetics community.
He established the Orthotics Prosthetics Pakistan platform in 2007 to share professional information, training opportunities and sector news. The initiative later developed into a registered organisation supporting greater visibility for the profession in Pakistan.
His career has included clinical, educational and rehabilitation roles in Pakistan before his work in paediatric care in the UAE. His qualifications include postgraduate study in prosthetics and orthotics in the United Kingdom and health administration in Pakistan.
Receiving the MEPOS fellowship connects this experience with a wider regional movement towards stronger collaboration between paediatric surgeons, rehabilitation teams and O&P professionals.
Kazmi said he accepted the recognition with gratitude and a renewed commitment to learning. For the IMEA O&P community, the award also highlights the value of making orthotists and prosthetists visible within clinical leadership, research and specialist paediatric education.
- Syed Irtaza Amir Hassan Kazmi on LinkedIn
- MEPOS Salalah 2026
- Middle East Pediatric Orthopaedic Society
- Dubai Health Paediatric Orthopaedic Surgery
- Dr Sattar Alshryda – Dubai Health
- Dr Ibrar Majid – Dubai Health
- Orthotics Prosthetics Pakistan