ملخص تنفيذي

This policy briefing highlights the status, recent developments, research trends and policy, and successes and challenges in the area of dementia in Qatar while also referring to the progress and challenges across the globe in this area, and provides recommendations to achieve better outcomes.

Dementia is a global health concern that is one of the leading causes of death by disability, significantly altering the lifestyles of those affected as well as their carers, with a significantly high global economic burden. Yet, it is understudied in comparison to other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as cancer.

World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH) has consistently dedicated itself to collaborating with both national and international partners to highlight the importance of tackling dementia both on a global and regional basis, with its first report published in 2015, titled “The Global Response to Dementia: A Call to Action.”

In 2015, Qatar joined the Global Dementia Observatory (GDO), the beginning of a number of broad policy commitments that include the formation of the National Dementia Stakeholder Group and the ratification of the Qatar National Dementia Plan (QNDP) in 2018, which is itself a roadmap for current and future policy actions in Qatar.

In spite of continuing obstacles, Qatar’s commitment to tackling the disease burden is apparent, and in light of national commitments and future avenues going forward, a number of lessons can be gleaned from the example of Qatar, which can be applied to the global stage.