Qatar and the rest of the world will celebrate tomorrow, Friday, World Health Day, observed on April 7, of each year coincides with the anniversary of the founding of the World Health Organization in 1948.
World Health Day is a global campaign to call on all countries of the world, leaders and officials, to focus on one health challenge that has a global impact.
This year's World Health Day coincides with the seventy-fifth anniversary of the establishment of the World Health Organization, and this year's celebration provides an opportunity to look back at the successes achieved in the field of public health, which have improved the quality of life during the past seven decades, and it also represents an opportunity to stimulate action to address the health challenges at the moment.
The World Health Day comes this year, as Qatar has made great strides in the health sector, which made it occupy advanced positions globally in the classifications that measure the development of the health system in countries, thanks to the great support and attention that the state attaches under the leadership of HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, for the health sector.
In recent years, the health sector in Qatar has recorded great development, especially with the inauguration of a number of new health facilities and in addition to the adoption of more modern technologies in the medical sector.
On this occasion, HE Minister of Public Health Dr. Hanan Mohamed Al Kuwari affirmed Qatar's commitment to the vision of health for all, noting that the health sector has made great progress in recent years to protect and support the health and well-being of the population of Qatar, thanks to the unlimited support for the health sector by the wise leadership.
Her Excellency said: "Qatar places great importance on the vision of Health for All. We understand that the health and well-being of Qatar's population relies not only on ensuring easy access to high-quality medical services for all citizens and residents, but also on ensuring our population lives in an environment conducive to good health and have the knowledge and tools to support their own health,"
Her Excellency pointed out that Qatar's achievement of World Health Organization "Healthy City" status for all eight municipalities -- the first country in the world to achieve this status for all its municipalities -- in addition to similar awards for Qatar University and Education City, highlights Qatar's Health in All Policies approach. The WHO Healthy City program aims to improve the health of populations by promoting health and well-being, improving equity, enabling communities and preventing the main causes of ill health through incorporating health in all policies and enhancing cooperation and partnership across sectors and society.
Her Excellency identified several key health indicators for which the country excels, explaining that Qatar's approach to Health for All is delivering measurable improvements on the population's health. "Since 2014, Qatar has seen a continual fall in infant mortality rates, while the life expectancy of our population has risen and is above among the countries in the region average. Additionally, Qatar ranks highly in its Universal Health Coverage Index, a global indicator assessing how countries provide access to quality health services, promote the well-being of families and communities, and protect against public health crises.
The progress made in the health sector in the State of Qatar has recently received global recognition, with five hospitals in Qatar ranked among the top 250 academic medical centers in the world and two hospitals among the top 100 centers, which confirms the sectors commitment to combining patient care, medical research and education to achieve the best outcomes and experiences for patients.
The State of Qatar has supported many countries in the region and the world through its charitable work to promote health for all around the world. This included providing medical support for the victims of floods in Pakistan and the recent earthquake in Turkey and Syria, as well as for cardiac catheterizations for children in the People's Republic of Bangladesh. Qatar also pledged USD 20 million to support the Vaccine Alliance (GAVI).
Among the achievements made by the health sector in the country at the local level in 2022 is the increase in the number of hospitals in the public sector to 16 hospitals, compared to six hospitals in 2011 when the first national health strategy was launched. In November, Aisha bint Hamad Al Attiyah Hospital was opened, which is the second largest hospital affiliated with Hamad Medical Corporation after Hamad General Hospital in terms of size and absorptive capacity. The hospital's total area is 140,000 square meters, while the building area is 82,000 square meters with 300 treatment rooms in the main building.
Also in 2022, new facilities were opened and constructed at the HMC, most notably, the Al Maha Center for specialised care for children, the permanent intensive care unit, the physiotherapy and orthopedic unit, a specialized clinic for smoking cessation, and the advanced wound care department, in addition to a 60 percent expansion of the area designated for assessing the health status of females in the HMC's Emergency and Accident Center, and the addition of 12 pediatric speech therapy rooms at the Qatar Rehabilitation Center.
The number of health centers in the public sector, including centers affiliated to the Primary Health Care Corporation, and centers run by the Qatar Red Crescent in accordance with an agreement with the Ministry of Public Health, increased to 33 centers in 2023, distributed over the various regions of the country, compared to 24 centers in 2011. Among these centers come the 35,000 to 50,000-capacity Al Mashaf Health Center, and the 50,000-capacity Al Khor Health Center.
The private health sector also witnessed a significant expansion in 2022 with the number of its facilities having increased to 10 hospitals, 19 ambulatory surgery centers, 390 general and specialized health centers, including dental centers, in addition to 31 diagnostic centers that include medical laboratories, diagnostic radiology centers, and dental laboratories. The number of the health workforce in the public and private sectors surged to 46,371 health workers this year, compared to 20,682 in 2011.
In 2022, Qatar became the first country whose all municipalities earned the title of 'Healthy City' from the World Health Organization (WHO). In the same year, the WHO office was opened in Qatar to enhance the organization's work with the Qatar's health authorities and many partners at the national level, such as UN agencies and other relevant authorities.
The health sector was at the heart of the preparations for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 in a bid to create a highly beneficial sustainable legacy of health and sports locally and globally. In this regard, a three-year partnership agreement was signed in Oct. 2021 between the Ministry of Public Health, the WHO, FIFA and the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy to improve access to health care and promote healthy lifestyles across the country during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. This partnership resulted in a range of activities that included enhancing health security and health communication, promoting health in relation to physical activity, healthy nutrition, mental health, and combating tobacco.
Comprehensive plans to respond to major incidents during the World Cup have also been activated and published, through joint efforts between the Ministry of Public Health and local health care institutions.
Health services were provided to fans through more than 100 clinics in stadiums, fan areas and accommodation, 110 ambulances, 212 mobile medical units, and the work of 2,275 employees in providing health services at World Cup sites. In addition, four HMC-affiliated hospitals have been designated for patients with urgent, non-emergency cases including Aisha bint Hamad Al Attiyah Hospital, Al Wakra Hospital, Hamad General Hospital, and Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital.
During the year 2022, the health care system in Qatar continued the path of development, improvement and progress in achieving its strategic goals, as more than 90 percent of the outputs of the National Health Strategy 2018-2022 were achieved. The strategy includes 54 projects and 16 national goals that are being worked on to achieve, through which more focus is placed on prevention, wellness, improving access to care, and delivering services in a more coherent and integrated manner.
Examples of achievements include a decrease in the prevalence of dental caries among children by 5 percent, an increase in the percentage of exclusive breastfeeding of infants aged 0-5 months by 10 percent, and an increase in the access of governmental and semi-governmental organisations to an occupational health program in the workplace to 60 percent.
Among the important achievements in the field of public health in the year 2022 is the preparation of the vaccine guide for "Covid-19" for the year 2022; the guide for seasonal influenza for the season 2022/2023; the guide for vaccination against meningitis; the national guide for defining cases of communicable diseases; the national plan of action for the integrated response and prevention of monkeypox, HIV, and sexually transmitted diseases; the national guide to responding to outbreaks; and the operational guide for mobile food laboratories in addition to preparing the air quality assessment report in the State of Qatar.
The Ministry of Public Health and health sector institutions have obtained a number of important international accreditations during the year 2022, including the obtainment of all municipalities of the State of Qatar this year to the title of Healthy City from the World Health Organization, as the first country in the world to obtain this title for all its municipalities. In addition, the Education City of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development won the title of (a healthy educational city), and Qatar University won the title of a healthy university.
On August 18, 2022, the Ministry of Public Health obtained international accreditation for public health services at the national level from the American Board of Accreditation of Public Health Services, for a period of five years, for the State of Qatar to become the first country in the world to obtain this international accreditation after the United States of America. This important accreditation is an affirmation that the concepts and principles of public health practices in the State of Qatar are implemented in accordance with the highest international standards.
Five of Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) facilities and services won the Excellence Award for Patient-Centered Care in March 2022, these are the Communicable Disease Center; the Home Health Care Service; the Private Nursing Service; the Ambulatory Care Center and the Enaya Specialized Care Center.
Furthermore, MoPH obtained international accreditation for the Food Safety Department from the American National Accreditation Board (ANAB) in the field of inspection of imported and local food and local facilities in accordance with the "ISO 17020" system, and the central food laboratories of the Ministry had previously obtained a renewal of international recognition from ANAB.
In 2022, HMC won the Grand Prize in the field of epidemiological response, presented by the Federation of Arab Hospitals in March 2022.
Meanwhile, the Organ transplantation programmes in Qatar have also achieved remarkable success, including three successful lung transplants during the first year of launching the lung transplantation program. The organ donor registry in the country has exceeded 500,000 registered donors, which represents about 25 percent of the adult population in Qatar. The program provides kidney, liver and lung transplant surgeries, making HMC one of the most comprehensive transplant centers in the region.
Among important achievements in the medical field at HMC is the launch of nuclear therapy for the first time for cancer patients; the success of a medical team in performing an intricate surgery to remove a brain tumor for a patient in an awake state, and the success of a surgical team in performing a delicate surgery to remove a tumor in the gallbladder using a robot. HMC's Ambulatory Care Center was also classified as a center of excellence for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia. Thanks to the continuous development witnessed by the Heart Hospital, the death rate resulting from acute heart attacks decreased during the year 2021 by 2 percent, compared to 2015.
The year 2022 saw the start of developing Qatar Health Information Exchange Platform, which significantly contributes to linking the various electronic systems to the platform, and thus to data collection.
The "Wathiq" food safety system was also launched to enhance the efficiency of the Food Safety Department in tracking food across the entire supply chain.
In addition, the Qatar Cancer Information Center was launched, and it is considered the national reference for information related to cancer in the State of Qatar. It aims to secure a comprehensive governance system for cancer information, and communication between all concerned institutions and individuals to provide high-quality, modern and reliable information about cancer. The center supports planning and policy-making in the field of cancer by relying on reliable and scientific data, promoting knowledge exchange, and improving resources through networking and information.
In 2022, the services of the unified call center for the health sector in the State of Qatar (16000) were also expanded, to include information and guidance services for the visiting public about health care services, which were available to them during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022; medical commission services; food safety management services and inquiries related to monkeypox disease, in addition to its other services that have been continuously developed since its establishment in March 2020, so that residents of the State of Qatar can easily access health care services.
The World Health Day this year is marked under the slogan "Health for All". According to the WHO, the vision of health for all crystallizes in that all people should enjoy good health in a world that enjoys peace, prosperity and sustainability.
The World Health Organization states that it is well established that empowering health systems through a robust approach of primary health care is the most labor- and cost-effective way to deliver health services and well-being to people.
