SCH Warns Healthcare Providers

With a surge in private healthcare facilities in the country, the Supreme Council of Health (SCH) has intensified vigil on such facilities to ensure public safety.

An increasing number of clinics had been shut down over the past few months — some permanently- for serious violations, following inspections conducted by the Medical Licensing Department at SCH. The department has initiated legal action against operators of some facilities having found that they had been functioning without a valid license, says Dr Jamal Rashid Al Khanji, director of the Department.

“The economic and development boom in Qatar has attracted more investors to the healthcare sector in the country. This has been manifested in a rapid increase in the number of applicants seeking a license to operate private clinics and hospitals. The number of such facilities may soon surpass the actual requirements of the country, if the current trend continues,” Al Khanji told The Peninsula.

He said the surge in the number of such facilities had put new challenges before the Department, particularly in terms of monitoring the quality of their service.

“We have got more tough against the erring facilities. There were at least six closures only in the past two months. Some facilities were shut down permanently for serious violations,” said Al Khanji.

The Department had also acted against health care facilities operating in companies that had failed to comply with the health standards and regulation.

The Department had earlier reported temporary closure of more than 20 health care facilities since November last year, ranging from solo clinics to full-fledged medical centers. Most of them resumed functioning after correcting the errors. A new list of closures is expected to be issued very soon.

The most common violations include operating without the required number of medical experts or with unlicensed or unqualified medical staff. Some clinics failed to keep proper records of the patients, while some others were found to use a part of the clinic for other activities.

Another serious violation was stocking of medicines in the clinic above the permitted quantity or stocking unlicensed medical products or those with expired validity.

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