Dr Huda al-Naemi (middle) flanked (to the right) by Prof Tar Ching Aw and Amal al-Langawi and (to the left) by Marie Claire Ross and Leo Dote.
The Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Department at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) has held the second Occupational Health and Safety Symposium to further highlight the importance of ensuring safety at all times within and beyond a healthcare setting.
The objective of the event is to ensure that participants gain a better understanding of occupational health and safety issues that impact their work environment and influence high-quality patient care.
Two international speakers spoke at the symposium. While Prof Tar Ching Aw, director of the Institute of Public Health at UAE University’s College of Medicine and Health Sciences, talked about the “Fundamentals of occupational health” and “Health risks exposure”, Marie Claire Ross, chief enabling officer and author from Digicast Productions, Australia, spoke on “Strategies to get attention on safety messages” and “Telltale signs of poor safety culture”.
Local speakers at the event were Leo Dote, HMC’s OHS safety instructor and acting head of the Risk Assessment section, Amal al-Langawi, programme manager for HMC’s Health Improvement Programme, Nabil Equilan, medical physicist in the Radiation Safety section of HMC’s OHS Department, and Brig Gen Amman al-Sulaiti from Civil Defence (fire safety).
Representatives from HMC’s Facility Management department as well as safety committee members from HMC hospitals, who are seen as leaders in ensuring health and safety compliance for their respective hospitals, also participated in the symposium. Doctors and nursing staff taking part in the event will receive 6 CME and 7 CNE points, respectively.
Dr Huda al-Naemi, executive director of the OHS Department, which is spearheading the programme for the second time, explained that the main aim of the symposium is to increase safety awareness in general. “It is important to relay the message of occupational health and safety to all staff at HMC and we are trying to do that by organising training and drills. From time to time, we also organise symposiums or conferences to further highlight the importance of occupational health and safety.”
She said staff members attending the symposium are encouraged to participate in the newly launched OHS eLearning programme, which went live on October 30. All HMC staff members are encouraged to complete the mandatory annual training on Fire and Environmental safety through the e-Learning system.
Dr al-Naemi stressed that the e-Learning training would provide an opportunity for all staff members to acquire more knowledge and information about fire and environmental safety.
