More than 800 international healthcare experts, key opinion leaders, primary care specialists, surgeons, physicians and health practitioners attended the opening ceremony of the 4th International Primary Care Conference in Doha on Thursday.

Primary Health Care Corp (PHCC) is hosting the four-day conference under the patronage of HE the Minister of Public Health Dr Hanan Mohamed al-Kuwari in partnership with Hamad Medical Corp and official sponsors Qatar Biobank, Qatar University and QNB.

Led by Dr Mariam Abdul Malik, managing director of PHCC, the conference features world-renowned healthcare experts including keynote speakers and many more distinguished speakers in the field of primary care.

At a local level, participants include health professionals from PHCC, the Ministry of Public Health, Qatar University, Weill Cornell Qatar College, Sidra Research Center, and Calgary College of Nursing.

Global experts taking part in the conference are from the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Kuwait, Oman, Lebanon, Jordan and Morocco, to share knowledge and best practice through panel sessions, exhibitions and workshops.

In her opening address, Dr Abdul Malik described the event as a landmark in primary health care in Qatar and the region, with the participation of worldwide primary health care leaders.

"PHCC has significantly invested in developing primary care facilities and broadening services provided to our communities. We have implemented various programmes to advance the quality of services, in partnership with local, international and in-country university partners, and this conference is providing an international platform to share our progress to date and to highlight our future ambitions to support excellence in not only primary health care but an integrated care system in Qatar," Dr Malik said.

“This is an opportunity to explore areas such as how best to develop integrated and population health-oriented systems of care, identify specific redesign strategies and interventions, and present evidence of their effectiveness.”

The conference will see the presentation of 60 research papers reviewing primary care challenges and developments, providing a platform to drive change and enhancing best practice.

Day one featured keynote speaker, Dr Marc A Bruijnzeels, an associate professor at Leiden University Medical School – Campus the Hague and the director of Jan van Es Institute, a small expertise centre for integrated primary health care in The Netherlands.

An expert in transitioning from volume- to value-based integrated care he delivered a presentation on “Turning vision into reality through innovation, integration and leadership”.

Dr Jeanelle de Gruchy, president of the Association of Directors of Public Health (ADPH) delivered a session on “Current challenges in health promotion and capacity building in a primary health care setting”.

Sessions on the first day also included discussions the role of clinical leadership on how to improve the performance of health services, updates in clinical use of antibiotics in paediatrics as well as panel discussions on the health care transition in Qatar.