Minister of Public Health H E Dr. Hanan Mohamed Al Kuwari
National Day and its connotations, values and principles are cherished by the Qatari people, clearly inspires and contributes to values of loyalty, solidarity, and unity among all said Minister.
In exclusive statements to Qatar News Agency (QNA) on the occasion of National Day, Minister of Public Health H E Dr. Hanan Mohamed Al Kuwari said that the State of Qatar has been blessed with wise leaders who are loyal to their country and citizens since the era of the founder Sheikh Jassim Bin Mohammed Bin Thani until present time under the wise leadership of HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, HE Minister pointed out. Her Excellency said that the State of Qatar is moving steadily and reaching great achievements in its blessed path of progress based on solid foundations and immortal values that have contributed to achieving comprehensive and sustainable development that takes into account the rights of successive generations.
Her Excellency extended congratulations and blessings on the occasion of National Day to the Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, the Father Amir H H Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the Deputy Amir H H Sheikh Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Thani and the honorable Qatari people.
The National Day slogan is based on the wise sayings of the founder, illustrates an important aspect of these values and principles that the Qatari people preserve and celebrate every year said the Minister adding that the slogan for this year’s National Day, “Ancestral Meadows: A Matter of Trust”, is derived from one of the poems of the founder Sheikh Jassim bin Mohammed bin Thani, which illustrates an important aspect of the citizens’ attachment to their environment and love for their precious homeland and its preservation.
The Ministry of Public Health and its partners in the health sector have made significant achievements, adding that Qatar has established a strong health system on a global level, thanks to the unlimited support of the wise leadership of H H the Amir.
In this context, Her Excellency highlighted H H the Amir’s speech during the first elected Shura Council meeting, in which he expressed thanks and appreciation to health institutions and their workers for their well-deserved success in addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. She said that this high praise represents a badge of pride for workers in the health sector and a motivator to do the utmost to always provide the best in community service.
The Minister stressed that Qatar, thanks to the directives of the wise leadership and the cooperation of state agencies, was able to respond to the pandemic and overcome two waves of it. The measures adopted by the State succeeded in limiting the spread of COVID-19 among members of society, mitigating its effects on various aspects of life, and reducing the death rate due to complications of the disease to a minimum, as one of the lowest death rates caused by COVID-19 in the world was recorded, she pointed out.
There are many factors that contributed to the success of Qatar’s experience in addressing the pandemic and reducing its effects, most notably the adoption of a consistent and integrated government approach, she noted, adding that Qatar adopted a strong and integrated governance structure to manage crises and emergencies, as well as respond quickly and effectively to emergency situations through a response and communication plan and increase the capacity of health care facilities.
She pointed out that the transparency adopted by Qatar in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic since the beginning contributed to building community confidence and commitment to implementing the measures approved by the State, which contributed to the success of the response plan to the pandemic.
This confidence also resulted in the community members responding positively to the national program for COVID-19 vaccination and the States coverage of most of its residents, as more than 85.6 percent of the population received two doses of the vaccine, which is one of the highest rates of vaccination against COVID-19 in the world, Minister Al Kuwari said. The provision of the third booster dose also began for people who have received their second dose six months before.
She indicated that the participation of volunteers and community institutions contributed to strengthening and implementing the pandemic response plan, in addition to the State’s commitment to its social and humanitarian role, and its contribution to supporting humanitarian and medical initiatives with the aim of alleviating the repercussions of the pandemic on humanity.
She pointed out that the State of Qatar ranked 15th for the countries that dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic and was the only Arab country that was included in this classification in Der Spiegel magazine.
In her statement to QNA, the Minister of Public Health reviewed the achievements made by the health sector, and said that despite the efforts to tackle COVID-19, with the great challenges it imposed on various sectors, the most important of which is the health sector, the health care system in Qatar has continued the process of development and improvement, and investment in new health facilities, services and technologies has contributed to developing the infrastructure of the health sector in the country with the aim of meeting health needs in light of the country’s rapidly increasing population.
She added that during the past 10 years, at the level of the public health care system, 10 state-of-the-art hospitals and many new specialized facilities were opened and the number of hospitals affiliated with Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) has increased to 14, the healthcare system now includes some of the most advanced medical technologies in the world. The number of primary health care centers in the public sector has now increased to 28 centers affiliated with the Primary Health Care Corporation and 4 other centers run by the Qatar Red Crescent, she noted.
The organ transplant program in Qatar has been developed to currently include lung transplants, in addition to kidney and liver transplant surgeries, making HMC one of the most comprehensive organ transplant centers in the region, the Minister said, pointing out that Hamad General Hospital successfully performed the first lung transplant operation in the State of Qatar.
She explained that at the level of the health sector, care has been taken in the health sector to improve the quality of healthcare and ensure patient safety, referring to the Ministry of Public Health’s launch of the Higher Committee for Medical Specialties (Qatar Medical Specialties Board) as a culmination of great efforts to improve and develop the efficiency of medical personnel in Qatar.
The e-health services also promoted innovation in a rapid and effective manner, and the health care system became connected through electronic systems that ensure the ability of medical teams to access patient records in the various facilities of the public health care system.
The Ministry of Public Health has developed a draft electronic system for pharmacy management and drug control, which is an electronic system designed to register pharmaceutical products and approve or refuse to trade them in Qatar. The Ministry has also started implementing the drug tracking project, which aims to monitor pharmaceutical and health products and provide information on the drug circulating in the Qatari market with ease.
The Ministry also developed the electronic food safety system, which represents a tight system for the food control process through three electronically linked systems represented in the imported and exported food control system, the food control system in the local market, and the electronic management of food analysis laboratories in order to raise the efficiency of the Food Safety Department in tracking food across the entire food chain.
The Ministry of Health has prepared the National Health Strategy, which will enhance the application and commitment of the State to the International Health Regulations 2005, with the participation of the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners in the health sector, and work to add a number of precautionary and complementary plans to the national framework for health emergencies.
She pointed out that the development of ambulance services and surgical facilities contributed to making Qatar one of the best countries in the world in the field of traffic safety. The post-accident response was improved to reduce fatalities and serious injuries, as the telephone response time to the accident was about 6 seconds, and the time to reach the accident site inside Doha was seven minutes and outside Doha was eight minutes in 91 percent of cases, she added.
She added that a mandatory health insurance system will be implemented for all expatriates and visitors to the country, and this will alleviate the challenges facing the health care sector as a result of the significant increase in population growth.
With regard to strategies, Her Excellency said that despite the COVID-19 pandemic, work continued to implement the projects of the National Health Strategy 2018-2022, reviewing some of the achievements made in a number of priorities of the strategy, similar to those related to priority population groups, where the national policies for occupational safety and health were adopted and published.
The Early Bird Program was launched to support parents and family members of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) to train them on strategies to improve their communication process and better understand their children.
The third national survey was conducted on public opinion and awareness of mental health in the State of Qatar, the establishment of the National Mental Health Helpline, in addition to the launch of a virtual mental health service for women, which supports women’s access to counseling and treatment in the field of mental health, and new services have been established. of psychiatry and integrating it within the services of specialized hospitals, expanding the clinical capacity for mental health in a number of hospitals, and developing and implementing many awareness programs to promote health.
The Health Cities Network was also established, and coordination committees were formed for each city at the municipal level, and five municipalities, adding that Al Rayyan, Doha, Al Wakra, Al Khor, and Al Shamal were registered in the WHO Healthy Cities Network, and the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean visited the cities of Doha and Al Rayyan to assess them with the aim of obtaining the approval of healthy cities.
Urgent care services were also provided in eight health centers around the clock, and automation of sickness certificate and case management through the Nar’aakom application, as well as providing home delivery services for medicines, opening clinics to provide integrated care services for heart diseases, mental health, dentistry, diabetes, ENT services, general pediatrics, dementia, and providing dialysis services in three health centers.
The Primary Health Care Corporation also received the Canadian International Accreditation for the third time and the People Centred Care Commitment award, in addition to the institution’s laboratories receiving the accreditation of the College of American Pathologists (CAP).
HE Minister spoke about future projects in the health sector, and explained that the Ministry of Public Health, the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, the WHO and FIFA are cooperating to make the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 a beacon for promoting physical and mental health and a model to ensure the holding of major healthy and safe sporting events in the future, where joint activities will be held to promote healthy lifestyles, health security, and physical and psychological safety during the tournament.
Work also continues to achieve 16 national goals within the Second National Health Strategy 2018-2022 in order to improve community health, where greater focus is placed on prevention and wellness, improving access to care and providing services in a more consistent and integrated manner.
