Dr Hanan Saleh A Alyazeedi Alyafei, Head of HHCS.
The Home Healthcare Service (HHCS) at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) is set to expand its services to ensure those in need have quick and easy access to high-quality care at home. HHCS will open new satellite offices and introduce new services this year, said Dr Hanan Saleh A Alyazeedi Alyafei, Head of HHCS.
HHCS is committed to providing quality healthcare to housebound patients. “Providing home care services to adults and children is an important element of fulfilling HMC’s vision of delivering the safest and most effective care to each of our patients,” Dr Alyafei told The Peninsula.
HHCS, which is based in Hamad Bin Khalifa Medical City, has satellite offices in Al Khor and Al Wakra and Muaither helping to serve the public in both communities and the surrounding areas. Plans are also ongoing to open additional satellite offices in the country to provide services to those living in areas including Al Rayyan. Dental care, mental health and palliative care services expected to be introduced in to HHCS within this year.
“HHCS provides home care to Qatar residents of all ages, Qataris and expatriates, who are temporarily or permanently housebound. We support patients’ timely discharge from HMC hospitals and provide clinical care and medical supervision to ultimately reduce the need for visits to the hospital,” said Dr Alyafei.
HHCS service has seen developments since its official launch in 2009 and continues to provide services in accordance with the highest international standards.
A total of 2175 patients are registered with HHCS by end of 2018. They include 1871 adults and 304 children. Among them 71 percent are Qatari and 29 percent non Qatari patients. HHCS has 245 staff and they have made 72,000 visits to patients by end of 2018. Among the patients 43 adults and seven children are on mechanical ventilator.
HHCS also has collaborated with Sidra Medicine and established a geriatric rapid response team in the Emergency Department at Hamad General hospital.
“Our services are available from pediatrics to geriatrics. Therefore we care patients at all ages,” said Dr Alyafei. “Six years ago, HHCS was not providing services to patients on mechanical ventilator, but now we have a total of 50 patients,” she added.
Adult patients with HHCS have developed different clinical problems such as hypertension, diabetes and cerebro vascular accident. And children have conditions such as cerebral palsy, genetic disorder and chronic respiratory failure.
“To ensure best quality of care and to support our vision, we need the support from families as HHCS is an integrated facility between the health care provider, the patient and their families,” said Dr Alyafei.
