The participants at the third Qatar Pediatric Emergency Medicine Conference held jointly organised by HMC and the Department of Emergency Medicine of Sidra Medicine.
The age limit for pediatric care at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) will be increased to 18 years in the future, said a senior official yesterday.
At present, the age limit for care at HMC’s Pediatrics Emergency Centers are till 14 years and Sidra Medicine sees cases up to 18 years.
“We are discussing and making arrangements to increasing the age limit for pediatric care and keeping it at an unified age at all healthcare facilities,” Dr Mohamed Al Amri, Medical Director of Pediatrics Emergency Services at HMC told The Peninsula, while speaking on the sidelines of the third Qatar Pediatric Emergency Medicine Conference.
Jointly organised by HMC and the Department of Emergency Medicine of Sidra Medicine, the conference gathered more than 600 experts at Grand Hyatt Doha to discuss about several topics related to pediatric emergency medicine. It also featured international speakers from the US, Oman and Kuwait.
Several international attendees and speakers are attending the conference from countries including Kuwait, Oman and the United States.
The three-day conference covered fundamentals of Pediatric Emergency Medicine relevant to all clinicians providing emergency or urgent care to children, and also current best evidence for common and critical pediatric emergencies.
The conference discussed topics that range from initial management and stabilization of pediatric emergency cases, types and incidence of medication errors in pediatric emergency, infectious diseases, pain management, surgical emergencies, respiratory emergencies and how vaccinations help preventing infections.
Participants include emergency physicians, primary healthcare physicians, nurses and persons from the emergency medical services (EMS). “The discussions and learning sessions during the conference help pediatric care clinicians provide even better care to children with urgent and emergency health issues,” said Dr Al Amri.
Separate discussions were on treatment and management of minor and moderate traumas such as fractures, cut wounds and burns as well about complex trauma.
“Fever, respiratory, seizure and bacterial infection are the common medical emergency cases seen at the Al Saad Pediatric Centre. We receive about 50 to 60 mild and moderate trauma cases a day. We evaluate, stabilize and transfer the patient needs Sidra Medicine depending on the condition,” said Dr Al Amri.
“However, major trauma cases are seen at the Trauma and Emergency Department at the Hamad General Hospital,” he added.
