Staff from Hamad Medical Corporation’s (HMC) Home Healthcare Services (HHCS) attended a road traffic safety awareness training course. The training was organised by the Ministry of Interior’s Traffic Department.
HHCS staff who attended the safety education session included physicians, nurses, drivers and allied health workers, who drive every day as part of their duties providing home-based specialised care to adults and children across Qatar.
As part of the service offered by HHCS, doctors, nurses and allied health professionals visit patients in their homes and perform a variety of medical support procedures, including oxygen administration, catheter changes and a number of therapies such as respiratory, physical, occupational and speech therapy. Other services, including wound care and diabetes management,
 are also provided.
The service is used by patients who no longer require the acute care provided in a hospital setting but still need support recovering from an illness or operation, or in the management of a chronic condition.
“We are concerned about the safety of our staff and one of our priority areas is road safety. Participating in the Traffic Department’s comprehensive road safety training helps to make sure our staff are aware of traffic rules and ways in which they can stay safe while on the roads,” said Mahmoud al-Raisi, chief of continuing care at HMC.
“Community and Home Healthcare Services teams travel around Qatar making over 4,000 patient visits each month,” said Susan Yates, HHCS’s administrator. “HHCS is expanding its services to include extended afternoon coverage and specialised clinical and education programmes. This will increase the need for our staff to be on the road even more and the HHCS team appreciates this great partnership with the Traffic Department in providing education and promoting road safety.”
Yates added that patients and their families can also play a role in helping HHCS staff stay safe by providing accurate directions to their home and information about any construction work around the area. Keeping driveways accessible and well lit (in case of visits during the night) is also important.