Regional Adviser in Mental Health and Substance Abuse at World Health Organization, Dr Khalid Saeed (second left), with other officials, during the Qatar National Dementia workshop held at La Cigale Hotel recently. Pic: Baher Amin/The Peninsula
A senior official at the World Health Organization(WHO) has lauded Qatar’s efforts in dementia care. Qatar has taken a lead role in dementia care in the region, said Dr Khalid Saeed, Regional Adviser, Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, WHO.
“Qatar is one of the few countries in this region that has an action plan and started to implement it. That’s why Qatar is the leader in this area,” he told The Peninsula.
“The progress which has been made in dementia care in the last few years is remarkable,” he added.
Qatar National Dementia Plan was launched in November 2018 and it sets out a comprehensive analysis of the challenges faced by people with dementia and the families and services that care for them.
The plan sets out seven action areas addressing sections of dementia care which will have an impact on improving the quality of care. The areas focus on making dementia a public health priority by encouraging dementia awareness and support, improving dementia diagnosis, treatment, care and support, promoting risk reduction, developing information systems for dementia, developing support for carers and supporting research and innovation into the disease.
“Qatar National Dementia Plan very much reflects the priority areas of the Global action plan on the public health response to dementia 2017-2025, which aims to improve the lives of people with dementia, their carers and families, while decreasing the impact of dementia on communities and countries,” said Dr Saeed.
He also emphasized that in addition to the health and social costs, those suffering from mental illnesses including dementia are also victims of human rights violations, stigma and discrimination, both inside and outside psychiatric institutions.
Dr Saeed was speaking on the sidelines of a two National Dementia Workshop held this week under the auspiciousness of the Ministry of Public Health and conducted by WHO officials. The workshop included physicians in internal medicine, geriatrics and psychiatry from the ministry, Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Primary Health Care Corporation, and caregivers of patients with dementia.
“The workshop aimed at identifying the gaps and strengths in the path of dementia care in Qatar,” he said.
According to Dr Saeed, Qatar has a policy and capacity building is ongoing but there is a need to raise more awareness and conduct research.
National Dementia Workshop was the first to be held since the launch of the Qatar National Dementia Plan.
“The workshop is another important milestone in the path of dementia care in Qatar. The learning of the workshop will help to reach the targets of the Qatar National Dementia Plan,” said Dr Mani Chandran, senior consultant geriatric psychiatrist, Department of Geriatric Medicine at HMC.
