Public urged to utilise urgent care centres across Qatar

As part of the ongoing public healthcare sector campaign ‘Where For Your Care?’ aimed at educating the public on emergency and urgent healthcare services in Qatar, the partners are highlighting the importance of urgent care centres to the community.Awareness of these centres supports the public's ability to seek appropriate medical care and reduce the number of patients attending emergency departments for minor injuries and conditions, ensuring that hospitals can focus on the most critical and emergency cases.The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH), Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC), Sidra Medicine and Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) are the partners in the initiative.Urgent care centres provide 24/7 medical support for non-life-threatening conditions such as respiratory conditions, minor burns, sprains, severe headache or earache and high fever.With 13 health centres across Qatar offering urgent care services delivered by the PHCC and QRCS, these facilities ensure that the public has access to the right level of care at the right time.PHCC has 11 adult urgent care centres, with five of them also accommodating paediatrics. The utilisation of PHCC's urgent care services has shown a steady increase, reflecting the community's reliance on these essential services, allowing for timely, efficient and comprehensive medical care when needed. PHCC also offers an urgent consultation service via telephone, seven days a week from 7am to 1pm by dialling 16000, selecting PHCC, followed by option 2.Dr Samya Ahmad al-Abdulla, senior consultant of Family Medicine and executive director of operations at PHCC said: "Our urgent care services, operated in 11 urgent care units within our health centres, allow individuals with urgent but non-life-threatening conditions to access the care they need quickly which contributes to reducing unnecessary pressure on emergency services.”In addition, QRCS runs two 24/7 urgent care centers dedicated to craft and manual workers. Dr Hasan Ali Kasem, chief medical officer - Medical Affairs Division, QRCS said, "In co-operation with the MoPH, QRCS operates four Workers’ Health Centers, which provide primary health care services for single male workers. Urgent care can be received at two of our centers in Al-Hemailah and Mesaimeer and includes, but is not limited to, minor and mild bruises, superficial wounds, spasm/spasticity pain, fractures, dislocations and minor non-extensive burns.”HMC also provides support to the community of Qatar with an Urgent Care Consultation Service that enables anyone with a medical query to speak to a physician over the telephone about their condition. Calls are triaged by a doctor to determine which specialty the patient should be referred to. This is available Sunday to Thursday, 8 am to 3pm by dialing 16000 and selecting option 3.Sidra Medicine delivers private urgent care services at its hospital for both women and children. The chargeable care is available via its Paediatric Urgent Care Clinic, open daily from 8 am to 12 am midnight. Its Women’s Urgent Care services provide assessment and treatment for women who require emergency or urgent care related to early pregnancy, gynaecology and obstetric conditions. It is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.