Tobacco control centre chief attends Cape Town meeting

Dr Ahmadal-Mulla, head of the Tobacco Control Centre at Hamad MedicalCorporation (HMC), attended the 17th World Conference on Tobacco orHealth (WCTOH) in Cape Town, South Africa.More than 2,500researchers, academics, scientists, healthcare professionals andofficials working in all aspects of tobacco control from both the publicand private sectors attended the event.The conference, held fromMarch 7 to 9, was organised as part of a collective resolution torecognise tobacco control as a global issue.Held every three years, the WCTOH is the premier, international conference on tobacco control.Attendeescame from more than 100 countries and organisations, including from theWorld Health Organisation (WHO), the US’s Centres for Disease Controland Prevention (CDC) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA).Topicsof discussion included empowering youth involvement towards the goal of atobacco-free world, calling on governments to decrease theaffordability and accessibility of tobacco products, and stopping publicand private investment in the tobacco industry.Dr al-Mulla said avideo showcasing HMC’s Tobacco Control Centre and the education, supportand treatment options available to patients, was shown during theevent, both on screens within the venue and on various social mediaplatforms associated with the event.He added that the conference wasan ideal platform to meet with like-minded groups for the purpose ofestablishing potential collaborations and partnerships withorganisations located around the world.During the three-day event,Dr al-Mulla met officials from a number of high-profile regional andinternational organisations, including Jordan’s Princess Dina Mired.Healso met Dr Flavia Senkubuge, president of the 17th WCTOH and thecurrent vice-president of the African Federation of Public HealthAssociation, to discuss tobacco control strategies in place within bothcountries and potential collaborations between Qatar and South Africa.Dral-Mulla also held meetings with representatives from the WHO todiscuss the success of previous collaborations between HMC and the groupand potential future collaborations.In 2017, HMC’s Tobacco ControlCentre was officially designated as a WHO Collaborating Centre, thefirst in Qatar and the region.As part of the meeting, both groupsagreed to conduct a regional Train-the-Trainer workshop for healthcareprofessionals later this year.The workshop will provide anopportunity for physicians, nurses and other allied healthcareprofessionals to obtain information about smoking cessation and tobaccocontrol.The sessions will also serve to expand knowledge sharing and education on the importance of tobacco control.The next WCTOH is scheduled to take place in Dublin, Ireland.