DOHA: Sidra Medicine, a speciality health care organisation for children, young people and women and a member of Qatar Foundation, yesterday opened its new hospital building.
The hospital, considered as one of the world’s most technologically-advanced health care facilities, welcomed 10 inpatients on the first day of its formal opening.
The first inpatients seen by Sidra Medicine were children requiring low-risk surgeries and a woman who underwent C-section.
However, the services will be ramped up through mid-2018 and more complex pediatric surgeries, specialist pediatric services in neurology and cardiology, among others would be included, along with deliveries focusing on high-risk pregnancies.
“The opening of the main hospital at Sidra Medicine marks the achievement of another major milestone in the expansion of health care facilities in the country,” said Minister for Public Health H E Dr Hanan Mohamed Al Kuwari.
“The new hospital will further enhance the health care provided for women and children and reinforce our commitment to improve the health and well-being of the people in Qatar,” he added.
Patients are encouraged to continue seeing their regular physicians unless they have a scheduled appointment at Sidra Medicine.
As no Emergency Department (ED) is currently open at Sidra Medicine and emergency cases should continue to be seen at the already established ED centres throughout the State of Qatar. Sidra Medicine open its ED in mid-2018 once the hospital becomes fully operational.
wAs a high-tech facility, Sidra Medicine has adopted cutting-edge technologies to enhance the patient experience and underpin the highest standards of care and patient safety.
“As part of Qatar Foundation, Sidra Medicine is a true embodiment of the country’s wider, long-term efforts to build a world-class healthcare and research infrastructure in Qatar, a H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser’s specific focus on transforming the care of women and children’s services in Qatar. Qatar Foundation, with Sheikha Moza at the helm, has been a powerful force for progress,” said Professor the Lord Darzi of Denham, Vice-Chair of the Board of Governors at Sidra Medicine, while addressing a press conference held at the new hospital.
“It has established Qatar as a leader in education, science and community development. We are incredibly proud to bring Her Highness’s vision to life. Sidra Medicine is the first of its kind facility in the Middle East and will become a resource for the entire Gulf region in terms of specialty care for women and children supported by an impressive research infrastructure that will help lead the way in personalized medicine,” the Lord Darzi of Denham said.
“I have no doubt that Sidra Medicine will become an international beacon of best practice and high-quality, academically-driven patient care,” he said.
“This is a big investment for a country that would like to see huge improvements in the quality of health services. Sidra Medicine’s basic principles are most needed in health care, which is a patient centered service with quality and safety.
“It is also a unique facility in the Middle East, and our doors are open to treating all patients within Qatar also within the Gulf region and beyond,” he added.
Medical care at Sidra Medicine is supported by research aimed at advancing the understanding of the epidemiology and mechanisms of diseases for the people of Qatar.
This will help develop personalised preventative, diagnostic and therapeutic tools and improve the health outcomes of the women, young people, and children of Qatar.
“The clinical teams at Sidra Medicine are some of the best in the world. They have been united by a passion to deliver the very best care to women, young people and children in Qatar and will be trusted partners throughout the journeys that our patients will take with us. As a state-of-the-art facility handling high-risk and special cases, our approach to the opening is necessarily phased to allow for proper testing at each stage. The safety and comfort of our patients are of utmost importance and we look forward to welcoming them,” said Sidra Medicine CEO, Peter Morris.
“Sidra Medicine not only stands for medicine today but medicine tomorrow, which is why our tripartite focus on patient care, biomedical research, and medical education is so important,” he added.
Dr Abdulla Al Kaabi, Executive Chair of the Children’s Services Clinical Management Group, Executive Vice Chief Medical Officer and Member of the Board of Governors, Dr John Ferguson, Chief Medical Officer, Dr Justin Konje, Chair of Women’s Services Clinical Management Group, Morag Gates, Chief Operating Officer and Dr Rashid Al Ali, Division Chief, Biomedical Informatics also addressed the press conference.
Once fully operational by mid-2018, Sidra Medicine will handle 275,000 outpatient appointments, 11,000 procedures, 100,000 emergency attendances and deliver over 9,000 babies per year, adding capacity to a rapidly growing population and delivering world-class specialist care.
Sidra Medicine will also accept regional and international referrals for women, young people, and children who need its specialist expertise. An international referrals office has already handled 117 cases from Bahrain, Egypt, Ghana, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Nigeria, Oman, Panama, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and the UAE since Sidra Medicine opened its Outpatient Clinic in May 2016.
Sidra Medicine’s outpatient services were launched on May 1, 2016, and now it operates over 50 outpatient clinics and services related to pediatric care for children and young people and maternity care for women.
Sidra Medicine’s research programme has been in operation since 2015 and aims to develop world-leading science and research programs that will align with Qatar’s national research strategy and also help address other public health issues.
