DOHA: The Prime Minister and Interior Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani yesterday inaugurated the National Diabetes Center at Hamad General Hospital.
The Minister of Public Health H E Abdullah bin Khalid Al Qahtani, Dr Hanan Al Kuwari, Managing Director of Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), and other officials were present.
The Premier and other officials also toured the facility, the first of its kind in Qatar, and interacted with senior staff.
The centre is on the second floor of the outpatient department and will provide Qatar’s diabetic population with improved care and access to specialised services offered through a multi-disciplinary approach.
“The vision for the centre is a patient and family-centred facility that offers treatment through an interdisciplinary team approach,” said Dr Al Kuwari.
“This is the first in a chain of diabetic care centres across HMC hospitals that will serve as one-stop facilities in which patients can speak with specialist doctors and nutrition experts, renew prescriptions and learn about how to manage their condition.”
The centre will serve as a model for a multi-disciplinary approach to caring for diabetics and is an example of HMC’s focus on integrating education and research with clinical care.
The centre includes morning and early evening clinics, foot care, counselling and education, blood investigation and insulin pump therapy. About 20,000 patient visits are expected this year.
The centre will also house research teams studying evidence-based strategies for the treatment and prevention of diabetes and its complications.
“The centre will serve as a model for the effective care of complicated cases. By creating seamless access to services and specialists and supporting targeted clinical research, it will improve patient outcomes and play an important role in caring for children and adults of Qatar who are living with diabetes,” said Prof Abdul Badi Abou-Samra, Chair, Department of Internal Medicine.
The ministers and other officials also toured the newly-established Supreme Council of Health office which will issue e-birth certificates in private and governmental hospitals in less than 60 minutes after completing the required form and facilitate registration of newborns.
The Peninsula
