WISH’s Doha Healthcare Week Offers Health And Wellness Activities

Ahead of the upcoming global gathering of the World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) on October 4 – 6, WISH will host Doha Healthcare Week from September 29 – October 3, in collaboration with several local partners including the Ministry of Public Health and Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC), and international partners such as The British Medical Journal.

Doha Healthcare Week (DHW) will engage the local community by offering a wide range of health and wellness activities for all age groups, aimed at improving both physical and mental health. Supporting Hamad Medical Corporation’s (HMC) ongoing campaign, WISH is inviting all eligible members of the community to donate blood at the HMC trucks stationed across the country throughout the week. The locations and timings can be seen here.

This year’s DHW is sponsored by Welwaze Medical, a US-based medtech company founded to support women with their breast health and promote breast health awareness. Aiding in early detection, the company’s product Celbrea® – a portable pad – is a non-invasive breast thermal activity indicator, which reports average temperature differences between breasts, indicating potential underlying pathology such as breast cancer.

Furthermore, for the first time, Doha Healthcare Week coincides with the start of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. To celebrate this, WISH has partnered with Qatar Cancer Society for a Cancer Awareness Walk that will take place on October 1 at Qatar Foundation’s (QF) Oxygen Park, as well as a social event at Qatar National Library (QNL) the following day, where cancer survivors will have the opportunity to share their experiences with the public to increase awareness and education around the disease.

Several other events will take place at QNL such as live cooking class with Qatari chef Noor Al Mazroei and British “One Armed Chef” Giles Duley; a storytime session aimed at promoting an understanding of Alzheimer’s disease among children; and art therapy workshops provided in English and Arabic by Naufar, the local rehabilitation center for substance abuse and addiction.

Paintings drawn by Naufar’s patients will be on exhibit throughout the five days of the event, at the PHCC-run QF Clinic. The exhibition titled “Reflecions” showcases the patients’ stories of hope and recovery, and aims to destigmatize substance use disorders so that those suffering from such disorders can be provided with the right support. Other art activations will take place at Doha Fire Station and Galleria Mall in Msheireb Downtown Doha.

QF PHCC Clinic will also run full body health check-ups throughout DHW which will include obesity screening, random blood sugar and cholesterol checks, BMI measurements, cardiac risk calculation and dental assessments.

The week will conclude with an edition of QF’s Education City Speaker Series at QNL on October 3, hosting Dr. Victor Santiago Pineda, a Venezuela-born social development scholar, serial social impact entrepreneur and disability rights expert.

The full program of Doha Healthcare Week can be seen via dohahealthcareweek.com