By Joseph Varghese/Staff Reporter
Aspetar, the first specialised Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital in the Gulf region, will open a new facility for the general public very soon, a top official of Aspire Zone disclosed Sunday.
"The new facility, the West Expansion, which will be opened soon after Ramadan, will provide several services for the general public," Khalid Abdullah al-Sulaiteen, chief executive officer of Aspire Zone, explained.
Speaking to the media after the opening of the North Expansion of Aspetar yesterday, the official said the West Expansion is one of the many projects underway at the Aspire Zone.
Dr. Mohamed Gaith al-Kuwari, acting director general, Aspetar, asserted that the West Expansion is dedicated for certain services, especially for exercises medicine.
“This is a part of sport medicine and the initiative comes from the American Sport Medicine Academy. The focus is to use exercises to treat certain muscular conditions as well as other chronic illnesses.This facility can also be used by recreational athletes who are not registered as athletes.”
“Exercises medicine aims to promote a healthy life style through sport. We already opened these services in March and there are a number of people who are waiting to make use of the programme. If the recreational athletes face any injuries, they can use the facilities at the West Expansion and benefit from all the innovative treatment.”
The North Expansion of Aspetar provides several facilities including a fitness screening centre for athletes. The new facility was opened by al-Sulaiteen along with Dr al- Kuwari and national team footballer, Ibrahim Majid, by cutting a ribbon.
Speaking about the new expansion, al-Sulaiteen said "the centre provides unique treatments with unique equipment.The whole process will help sport and the people in the sport industry in a big way.”
“The sports people can have their treatment in the same building without the need to go outside for some other treatment. All the facilities are integrated and will be provided in the same place. The new expansion has 18 clinics and a screening centre for fitness. It is a three-storey building with an area of 5,000sqm. It will help Aspetar to screen 4,000 athletes instead of 2,000 that used to be screened yearly,” he added.
Prof. De Nebojsa Popovic, chief medical officer at Aspetar, said the world class screening centre, the only one of its kind in the region and approved by FIFA, will transform Doha into a sport medicine centre.
