Call for suitable technology, more healthcare professionals

Source: The Peninsula

H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser attending the gala dinner of the World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) at Al Shaqab Equestrian Centre. With her is HRH Princess Lalla Salma, HRH the Duke of York, Prince Andrew (right), and Boris Johnson, Mayor of London.

DOHA: The need for Qatar to adopt tailor-made technology and increase the number of healthcare professionals was stressed at the closing session of World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) 2013 yesterday.

H H Sheikha Moza bit Nasser, Princess Lalla Salma of Morocco and Princess Ghida Talal of Jordan also attended the session.

Former health minister Dr Ghalia bint Mohammed Al Thani outlined the challenge of introducing patient-centred treatment.

“We need to introduce tailor-made technologies to meet the needs of our healthcare sector,” he said.

“But the unique challenge is not having nationals as professionals,” she said, explaining how Qatar Foundation is working to train locals to become healthcare professionals.

During the two-day WISH 2013 summit, world leaders and policymakers discussed the most pressing global health problems, including obesity, mental health, accountable care, big data and healthcare, antimicrobial resistance, end-of-life care, patient engagement and road injuries and made suggestions to address them.

They also shared experiences gained through practice.

Summing up the conference, Professor Lord Darzi, Director of Global Institute of Health Innovation, Imperial College London and Executive Chair of WISH said “Providing consistently high quality, cost-effective healthcare is a global challenge with local solutions.

“We hope that we have inspired delegates to take away some of the ideas presented at WISH and devise solutions which are right for their national healthcare requirements.

“WISH has provided the blueprint for a new era in global healthcare policy — one in which gradual improvements and sporadic breakthroughs are replaced by systematic innovation and co-operation.”

About the next steps of the summit, Lord Darzi said, “Delegates should try to influence and make changes in the 67 countries they come form. We also looked at creating a database of innovations from which countries can benefit.”

The Innovation Plenary Panel discussed new developments in technology, management and medical practice in the context of global healthcare demands.

These included an ambulance redesign from the UK, a water purifier from Sweden, and a handheld visualisation tool powered by ultrasound technology to see inside a patient during a physical exam. The Peninsula