FROM LEFT: Prof. Lord Darzi of Denham, Executive Chair, WISH; with Omran Hamad Al Kuwari, Executive Director, CEO Office, QF; and Khalifa Al Kubaisi, Head of Press Office, QF; after a media briefing on WISH 2018 at the WISH headquarters at the Education C
The World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) will host its next biennial summit in Doha on November 13 and 14, 2018, to discuss and find innovative solutions to the global healthcare challenges.
For the fourth time, WISH, an initiative of Qatar Foundation (QF), will bring together thousands of high-level policy makers, academics and innovators in healthcare at the Qatar National Convention Center.
WISH 2018 will focus on nine topics that highlight and address some of the world’s most pressing healthcare challenges. Groups of experts will work together to build evidence-based research on the topics ahead of the summit. They will present their findings in a series of reports that will be published prior to the summit and explored during panel discussions at WISH 2018. The topics will be announced over the coming months and will focus on a range of medical, social, humanitarian, and policy-driven areas.
Also ‘The WISH Hub’, will be inaugurated at the WISH 2018. The new feature will provide interactive demonstrations in health-related technologies – such as robotic devices, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality – and will offer a place for summit attendees to network, take part in informal group discussion sessions, and meet the authors of WISH’s latest reports.
“When, back in 2012, HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chairperson of Qatar Foundation, announced her intention to create WISH, she offered global healthcare leaders an exciting opportunity to come to Qatar and use WISH as a base from which to capture and disseminate the best new evidence-based, healthcare-focused ideas. As we start the build-up to our fourth summit, I think we can be proud of what we’ve achieved so far, confident that our community of leaders continues to bring about positive change through innovation in the global healthcare sector, and ambitious when exploring further ways to work together towards building a healthier world,” said Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham, Executive Chair of WISH, during a press conference held to announce the dates of WISH 2018.
“Over the months leading up to the summit, WISH team will be announcing some of the areas that are going to be addressed during the WISH 2018. We have chosen topics based on the need as well as the big challenges and opportunities in 2017 and 2018,” he added.
Lord Darzi was joined by Omran Hamad Al Kuwari, Executive Director, CEO Office, QF, and Khalifa Al Kubaisi, Head of Press Office, QF during the press conference held in the QF’s Headquarters.
Also applications are now open for the WISH 2018 Innovation Showcase competition – a competition that offers entrepreneurs and healthcare innovators from around the world an opportunity to display their innovative projects or products at next year’s summit.
Among the applicants, 20 most affordable and effective innovations will be selected by an international panel.
“The projects will be selected in terms of their impact and cost. So affordable innovation but with a big impact is something we always looking to identify. Because healthcare is getting costlier we are looking for cheaper and better solutions,” said Lord Darzi.
