Qatar's health sector has seen a huge growth in recent years, and made great strides in many areas as the country ranked among the world's developed countries in providing comprehensive health care that is at par with the best health care systems in the world.
Visitors of Qatar can now see the progress made in health care especially at big medical institutions which have started to compete with their rivals that enjoy international reputation for offering quality medical care and nursing services.
These institutions are health education and research centres such as Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, and the Sidra Medical and Research Centre; a high-tech academic medical centre initiated by Her Highness Sheikha Moza to offer world-class clinical care, medical training and biomedical research in Qatar.
Some health sector hallmarks in Qatar include the distinguished medical achievements made by the national health care institutions on technical and curative levels. Some of these institutions were pioneer in the region such as Hamad bin Khalifa Medical City Complex which started operating in May 2003, and the accreditation of Hamad Medical Corporation by Joint Commission International (JCI); an international body that offers accreditation to medical centres across the world. Moreover, education and treatment institutions and centres are now equipped with state-of-the art laboratories and medical equipment.
The health sector in Qatar now features the most advanced medical equipment and qualified cadres. The health insurance network and health services have also been expanded to cover the entire country through a wide network of hospitals and health centres.
National Health Strategy
The National Health Strategy (NHS) includes a comprehensive programme of reforms, aligned to the Qatar National Vision 2030 that will further advance Qatar’s Healthcare Vision of creating a world-class, patient-centered healthcare system.
The strategy has seven objectives. They are as follows:
A comprehensive world-class healthcare system whose services are accessible to the entire population.
An integrated system of healthcare offering high-quality services.
Preventive healthcare, taking into account the different needs of men, women, and children.
A skilled national workforce capable of providing high-quality health services.
A national health policy that sets and monitors standards.
Effective and affordable services in accordance with the principle of partnership in bearing the costs of healthcare.
High-caliber research directed at improving the effectiveness and quality of healthcare.
The NHS provides a guiding work plan, under seven goals, with 35 specific projects and associated implementation plans to achieve the goals of Qatar National Vision 2030. It is a strategy for reform with far-reaching and fundamental changes across Qatar's entire healthcare system.
Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC)
Hamad Medical Corporation is a premier non-profit health care provider in Qatar that was established by an Emiri decree in October 1979.
HMC is one of the region's most distinguished specialized medical establishments. It was accredited by JCI as one of the quality health care providers. It also plans to obtain another certification for nursing services thus becoming the first Arab nursing institution to be accredited.
The Corporation manages four highly specialised hospitals. They are the Hamad General Hospital, Rumailah Hospital, Women’s Hospital, and the Psychiatric Hospital in addition to the Primary Health Care Centres.
Throughout the years, Hamad Medical Corporation has fulfilled its mandate of providing best quality care to all patients irrespective of nationality, and played a key role in providing “Health for All” as pledged by the State of Qatar.
HMC has also devised a nursing strategy and a two-year action plan (2013 – 2015) which will accelerate its journey to delivering one of the best nursing services in the world.
Supreme Council of Health (SCH)
At the heart of Qatar’s strategic vision for the future is helping people achieve their full potential, thereby benefiting individuals, their families, the community and the nation.
Healthy people served by an outstanding well-managed, health care system are essential to success, and to achieving His and Her Highness’s vision for Qatar’s future.
‘Caring for the Future’ means promoting public health, encouraging healthy lifestyles, providing community-based primary care, and ensuring that, when needed, some of the world’s most advanced and highest quality care is available.
The SCH will oversee and regulate the medical sector, promoting high quality care through use of the latest information technology and support of a health care financing programme that provides access to everyone while establishing incentives for good care.
The SCH will promote evidence- based policies that seek to improve the health and wellbeing of individuals and their families, and will measure change against established objectives in order to be sure progress is being achieved.
SCH’s role is to create a clear vision for the nation’s health direction, set goals and objectives for the country, design policies to achieve the vision, regulate the medical landscape, protect the public’s health, set the health research agenda, and monitor and evaluate progress towards achieving those objectives.
In short, the SCH is the steward of the health of Qatar’s people. It has the dual mandate to develop policies and programmes to improve people’s health so that they enjoy longer and more productive lives, and to lay the foundation for a vibrant country for decades to come.
The Private Health Sector
Accounting for 166 private clinics and medical complexes, 131 dental clinics, 4 general hospitals and over 1,150 medical doctors, the private health sector has considerably developed and continued to play a vital role in providing health care services in the state of Qatar.
H.H Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani has issued a decree beginning of last June that states offering a national health insurance scheme. The goals of the scheme are based on the Qatar National Vision 2030 and the National Health Strategy.