A Mobile Health content download and SMS service has been launched by Asiacell- the first and largest private Iraqi telecommunications company. This step is one of Asiacell‘s activities aiming to spread health awareness throughout the community. Women’s health, men’s health, children’s health, dieting, mental health, and diabetes are some health issues discussed in Asiacell‘s daily SMS service. Also this service provides some healthy advice like sports and fitness, mental health, and emergency medicine.

Applying this service confirms the Company’s interest to follow the latest achievements in healthcare sector, as Abdulla Hassan, Asiacell‘s Public Relations Unit Head, explained. Dr. Mustafa Adil, a medical expert revealed that adopting a healthy lifestyle is considered a huge priority for communities, as people are more aware of the importance of following the latest health advancements and practices. Finally, Dr. Mustafa Adil thanked Asiacell for its great efforts in many sectors through utilizing its expertise and offering cutting-edge services.

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Dr. Muhammad Khasheem, deputy minister for planning and development announced that in the next five years, 121 hospitals will be established and 66 hospitals will be rebuilt by the Health Ministry across the Kingdom. “We want to improve the standard of our workers in order to provide better services” he said explaining that the staff of the ministry will launch a quality development program.

A new research center north of Riyadh is expected to be built, as Khasheem reported. This announcement was made during the launch of a quality training program for staff of laboratories. Riyadh hosted this program which included employees of 166 laboratories from different parts of the Kingdom. Ibrahim Al-Omar, director general of laboratories and blood banks at the ministry, stressed on improving the quality in health sector.

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Top international health experts will be met in Doha for the inaugural edition of the International Forum for Supporting Health Professional Education in Palestine-Gaza Programme. The event is organized by Qatar Red Crescent (QRC) in collaboration with PIMA, Doctors Worldwide-Turkey, the National Committee for Health Education in Palestine and the Jordanian Committee for Support of the Health Sector in Gaza.

The meeting aims to develop projects for improving health education in Gaza with the goal of reducing the area’s dependency on foreign expertise.

Dr Mohammed Al Ali Almadeed, Secretary-General of QRC and president of the forum said “Our goal has been to help strengthen Gaza’s health sector from within. By empowering health professionals through education and training, we are dedicated to building their capacity rather than adding to their dependence.”

Dr Abdul Latheef Alkhal, Director of Medical Education at HMC said “We will continue to enroll 10 doctors from Palestine annually in the training programme. There is a proposal to take nurses and technicians for short term training programmes.”

Qatar has also plans to send medical experts to Palestine to train health care workers there and establish residency and fellowship training programmes in Palestine that will match international standards, he added.

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A law on health insurance for citizens will be passed during the current parliamentary term and the government has concluded a three-year study of the bill, officials said. “It’s high time it was approved to serve citizens and reduce the burden shouldered by the health sector in general,” stressed officials. Furthermore, officials emphasized that the current private sector’s infrastructure comprising various specialized private hospitals and clinics were fully capable of providing adequate health services to both citizens and expatriates, reported Al-Rai. “Citizens have paid around KD 3 million in health insurance through special subscriptions or through the government or private institutions they worked for.

They also paid a lot in health insurance in order to obtain tourist visas to visit the US and European countries. We do have fully qualified and specialized private hospitals that are fully capable of providing various kinds of treatments to health insurance holders,” officials explained.

Meanwhile, the cabinet has reiterated its commitment to presenting a united front against any grilling motion filed against any of its members in the upcoming period. The cabinet’s statement follows reports suggesting that at least four interpolation motions are currently being prepared against ministers.

The cabinet is also intent on maintaining its progress in implementing its development plan and will not allow political tensions to affect its efforts, reported Al-Qabas. There is a widespread feeling that while the reports of some interpolation motions are indeed correct, others are rumors being used to put pressure on ministers to carry out a cabinet reshuffle to force information minister and minister of oil Sheikh Ahmad Al-Abdullah Al-Sabah from his post after he survived a recent grilling, as well as a subsequent parliamentary no-confidence vote.

The cabinet will be studying all the points raised during Sheikh Ahmad Al-Abdullah’s recent grilling in order to take the necessary steps, said State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Dr. Roudhan Al-Roudhan, adding that it will also review the events that took place during the no-confidence vote session in order to devise new strategies to deal with political blocs in the future so as to gain their support and avoid further interpolations.

Meanwhile, the delay in issuing this year’s annual government report will lead to additional delays in deciding the state budget due to the connection between the report and the parliamentary finance committee’s budget schedule, meaning that any amendments to the report will necessitate making corresponding amendments to the budget.

On a separate issue, MP Dr. Faisal Al-Mislem revealed that the Development and Reform Bloc is to ask the parliamentary women’s affairs committee to commit itself to presenting a report on the civil and social rights bill, accusing the committee of obstructing the passing of the legislation.

MP Dr. Maasouma Al-Mubarak, a member of the joint parliamentary committee assigned to discuss the bill, denied reports that the committee had reached agreement with the cabinet during Tuesday’s session on adopting the bill, claiming that the cabinet still had reservations over the proposed legislation.

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The pilot project of Qatar’s National Health Insurance Scheme is ready for launch by next year. The law is ready and the government is working on the implementation aspect of the Scheme, said Minister of Public Health H E Abdullah bin Khalid Al Qahtani. He also revealed that the country’s first military hospital is under study.

The Minister was talking to a section of media on the sidelines of the 5th Finance & Investment in Qatar Forum here yesterday.

“Health insurance is a risky sector. The launch of the project needs a huge back-up system and a massive network with various stake holders including hospitals, employers and various other agencies. The government is working on that and I hope we could possibly launch the pilot project by next year. It is yet to be decided whether private sector would be a player in the proposed health insurance scheme,” he said.

The Minister said the country’s health care system is on a major revitalisation process. Currently the country’s public health sector has only 1.7 beds for 1000 people. This ratio would go up to 4.4/1000 people in 2013.

With the launch of the Hamad Medical City, the country would have four new hospitals and nursing home for the elderly. The commissioning of Sidra and the launch of the 280-bed military hospital would double the bed capacity of the country’s health sector by the first quarter of 2013.

“Over the last two decades the country’s health care system had witnessed great developments. The health sector has expanded significantly since the country’s first hospital opened is doors more than 50 years ago. The HMC will add two more hospitals in the near future, The Cardiology Centre of Excellence is set to open this summer and Al Wakra general hospital next year,” minister said.

As of now, the minister said, the primary health services are being discharged through 21 health centres. Within the coming five years, at least 8 primary health centres would be launched bringing the primary health care services to the door steps of the people. Tenders would be soon floated for Qatar’s first private-public partnership in the health sector to provide management and medical services for three hospitals, and five primary health centres dedicated to caring for the country’s large labour force.

The Minister said that the fund allocations for the health sector has been recording an exponential growth over the years. The annual budget has gone up from $1bn in 2007 to $2bn in 2010; and the per capita expenditure rose from $851 to $1379 during the same period.

The country’s private medical sector has recently witnessed a remarkable development. More than 300 private clinics and health complexes have come up during the last few years. Four modern private hospitals are now providing high quality health services in the country. “Our laws encourage such investments, be it local or international ones. The government allows 100 per cent foreign ownership in health ventures and income tax exemption for private health care facilities. The government also grant tax exemption for import of medical equipment and for other infrastructure to run health care facilities,” Al Qahtani said.

Qatar has set aside 2.8 per cent of its GDP to medical research. The country is targeting a high quality research aimed at enhancing its quality of health care system.

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