Some 150 medical practitioners involved in eye care took part in Al Ahli Hospital’s second edition of the Mena Ophthalmology Congress, which was held in Doha from April 27 until yesterday.
The conference was organised by events, training and association management company Maarefah Management in collaboration with Al Ahli Hospital and with the support of institutions such as the Saudi Association of Optometry, Egyptian Society for Glaucoma and Bahrain Medical Society.
“Holistic eye care is unthinkable in an isolated setting without close multidisciplinary interaction, and the art of ophthalmology has become very technical, sophisticated and expensive, indeed,” said professor Dr Alexander Bialasiewicz, chairman of the Scientific Planning Committee and department head of Ophthalmology, Al Ahli Hospital.
“Specialised nurses, assistants, technicians, photographers, echographers, optometrists and orthoptists are as important as physicians and should be valued as such,” he stressed.
Among the topics discussed at the conference included paediatric ophthalmology and genetic testing, uveitis, glaucoma and implants, refractive surgery, cataract and cornea treatments, neurodegeneration and ocular complications of diabetes mellitus, clinical cases from Qatar.
The conference, accredited with 13.5 points, Category 1 by Qatar’s Council of Health Practitioners, focused on select Qatar National Health Priorities of the Qatar National Research Fund and covered some topics of the Qatar National Health Strategy issued by the Ministry of Public Health.
The CPD-accredited conference forms part of Al Ahli Hospital’s corporate social responsibility and continuous medical education programme aimed at supporting healthcare practitioners.
Last month, Al Ahli Hospital also organised a CPD-accredited symposium related to obesity and overweight, attracting a large number of participants from Qatar. It is set to hold another symposium related to rehabilitation, physiotherapy and physical therapy on May 12 and 13.
Maarefah managing director Dr Doaa Said highlighted the importance of such initiatives in the region, especially in the era of ophthalmology. 
“We are pleased with the strong response that we have received for this pioneering event for the region, which is focused towards the development of better and improved healthcare practice in the field of ophthalmology,” she said. “The success of the previous Mena ophthalmology congress has inspired us to look at the recent developments and updates in the field through the gathering of leading national and international experts.”
She stressed that the current growth in the ageing population as well as the increase in diabetes enhanced the need in the region to look at latest updates to serve patients best.

Infections because of contact lenses  on the rise


While addressing the Mena Ophthalmology Congress, professor Dr Alexander Bialasiewicz, chairman of the Scientific Planning Committee and department head of Ophthalmology, Al Ahli Hospital, cited an “epidemic of eye infections” in the region because of contact lenses. 
It constitutes a high number of about 100 in 12,000 patients per year due to several environmental factors but can be cured or remedied.




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