Qatar has prepared to host the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 by providing a solid and advanced infrastructure and modern facilities, a large package of medical and preventive care services, and huge capabilities in the field of health services to come out a healthy and safe tournament.
The Ministry of Public Health worked in cooperation with local healthcare institutions and international partners to develop its plans related to healthcare services and response to emergency and major incidents during the tournament, depending on the public and private sectors in this regard.
Throughout the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, there will be a mobile command unit and dedicated crews to respond to major incidents at each stadium on match days, which will be supported by a regular ambulance service. The command units will act as a communication centre and transfer information immediately to coordinate response plans. There will also be a mobile major incident response unit in each stadium on match days. These units will contain all the resources needed to set up a temporary field treatment site with a variety of air-conditioned tents in which sick and injured patients can be treated according to their condition.
In this context, the Ministry of Public Health has launched a new website that provides local fans and visitors with a wide range of medical and preventive advice and information related to the health care services that will be provided during the tournament.
The Ministry of Public Health is focusing on benefiting from the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 not only through providing medical services, but also to make this event a legacy of health. Therefore, the Ministry, in cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO), has continued preparations to make the World Cup a beacon of health and safety and a platform to share and learn lessons for major global sporting events in the future. FIFA and the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy support this partnership, which comes within the framework of a campaign to promote global health through football.
In exclusive statements to Qatar News Agency (QNA), Chair of the Supreme Healthcare Communications Committee Ali Abdullah Al Khater revealed that fans can get medical care at any of the hospitals, medical centres and private or public clinics in the country, whether emergency care services or urgent care.
Al Khater said that visiting fans who have private travel insurance that includes health care coverage should check the private medical facilities they visit to familiarise themselves with the terms and conditions related to the payment of service fees according to their insurance policy.
He added that visiting football fans can access emergency or urgent medical services at public healthcare providers in Qatar through HMC hospitals and PHCC Health Centers for free throughout the tournament. They must present their Hayya card to get free health services at public facilities, while fans receiving non-emergency or urgent medical services at HMC and PHCC facilities will be charged at the standard visitor rate.
He pointed out that the Ministry of Public Health recommends, although it is not mandatory, that visiting fans obtain travel insurance coverage, with health care coverage, for the duration of their stay in Qatar.
Al Khater revealed the establishment of more than 100 medical clinics in football stadiums, fan zones and main residence sites to ensure medical support for people suffering from emergency but not life-threatening conditions, and announced the allocation of 4 hospitals affiliated to Hamad Medical Corporation for non-emergency urgent patients, namely Sheikha Aisha Bint Hamad Al Attiyah Hospital, Al Wakra Hospital, Hamad General Hospital, and Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital.
He said that the Ministry of Public Health will promote many emergency and urgent care options through its website for fans of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, which was launched earlier. A complete list of private medical facilities providing urgent and emergency care can be found on it.
He said that an essential part of the healthcare strategy during the tournament is to enable easy access to medical services where anyone suffering from an injury or life-threatening condition can dial 999 to get an ambulance and will receive prompt medical care and be transferred to the appropriate emergency department.
Last year, the Ministry of Public Health established multiple committees, including representatives from all over the healthcare system, where each committee reports to the Health Strategic Leadership Group for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 to ensure readiness to provide the necessary medical services during the tournament events smoothly.
Chairman of the Supreme Healthcare Communications Committee stressed that with the expected arrival of large numbers of visitors to Qatar to attend the tournament, the healthcare sector is ready to face the expected increase in demand for care services while ensuring its ability to continue providing high-quality healthcare to all members of society.
For his part, Head of the Health Strategic Leadership Group for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Dr. Ahmed Al Mohammed said in a special statement to QNA that Hamad Medical Corporation's Ambulance Service will play a key role in providing services at stadiums, and areas where matches will be held, and prepare and be ready for any possible emergency incidents.
He explained that the State of Qatar has a great and diverse experience by hosting high-level sporting events in recent years, and healthcare teams have played an important role in supporting the successful conduct of these tournaments, including the Club World Cup, the World Athletics Championship, and the Arab Cup.
He added that the transformation that has taken place in the healthcare sector over recent years and the work done to increase capacity and enhance the quality of care provided, has enabled the sector to be able to meet the additional demand expected for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
Dr. Al Mohammed reviewed the huge potential and solid infrastructure of the health sector in Qatar, as since 2011, 10 new state-of-the-art hospitals and 16 modern and advanced primary health care centres have been opened, bringing the number to 28 health centres, as well as many new specialised facilities, including emergency and urgent care units.
In turn, the private healthcare sector has also witnessed a significant expansion with the opening of many new hospitals and medical centres in recent years, with the development of the quality of care provided to patients in the public and private sectors, where continuous efforts to improve quality have culminated in obtaining many international accreditations in the field of quality and safety by providing a wide range of health services.
In October 2021, the MOPH, WHO, FIFA and the SC signed a three-year partnership to make the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 a beacon to promote physical and mental health, and a model to ensure safe and healthy major sporting events in the future.
Dr. Ahmed Al Mohammed said that through this unique partnership, the Group will be able to use the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 as a catalyst to promote healthy behaviours and ensure a safe World Cup for all participants.
Officials of the Ministry of Public Health and the World Health Organization have also recently prepared a wide range of measures to mitigate any potential threats to public health, and to ensure the safety of players, officials, fans and residents throughout the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
These efforts came within the framework of the MOPH-WHO "Sport for Health" partnership, where health security is a key pillar of that partnership along with health promotion, including risk assessment, protocols for mass gatherings inside and outside stadiums, event-based surveillance to protect people from outbreaks of infectious diseases and risk reporting.
MOPH's Manager of Health Protection and Communicable Disease Control Dr. Hamad Eid Al Rumaihi commented that major sporting events such as the World Cup are attended by large numbers of people, which is a burden on the public health services and response resources of the host country or community. Therefore, preparedness is crucial for any effective health security plan.
He stressed that the healthcare sector in Qatar has witnessed significant growth and expansion over the past ten years, which contributed to significantly enhancing the absorptive capacity across the health system with the expansion of the Ambulance Service and the opening of the largest Trauma and Emergency Center in the region in 2019.
He added that the Ministry of Public Health has attached great importance to building a strong and highly skilled team of healthcare professionals within the health system to lead and provide high-quality healthcare services, so that all football fans visiting Qatar to attend the World Cup can rest assured that they will receive healthcare services from HMC teams according to the highest international standards.
Through the "Sport for Health" Partnership, WHO supports the MOPH by providing technical guidance in applying a risk-based approach when planning major events and strengthening response capacities. This technical support will contribute to enhancing Qatar's expertise in the field of public health and refining it with the latest practices and experiences gained from recent major sporting events.
The World Health Organization (WHO), represented by Dr. Rayana Bou Haka, the WHO representative in Qatar, expressed its admiration for the successful experiences of the State of Qatar showing the lessons learned during the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2022, including strengthening health emergency preparedness and ensuring the maintenance of precautionary measures to contain infectious diseases, including COVID-19, in order to keep people safe and healthy.
MOPH's Director of Health Emergency Department Dr. Mohammed Al Hajri explained that Qatar has hosted many high-level sporting events in recent years, and the healthcare system has played an important role in supporting the successful management of these tournaments.
He added that these events, including the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup Qatar, the 2019 World Athletics Championships, and the 2021 FIFA Arab Cup Qatar, enabled the healthcare sector to gain valuable experience and test its plans to respond to major incidents before the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
He said that the response plans for major incidents in the healthcare sector were rigorously tested in the recent mass casualty simulation exercise. The exercise, the latest in a series of workshops and simulation exercises organised by the Ministry of Public Health and the World Health Organization, tested the emergency response processes in the healthcare system before the start of the tournament, which enabled the teams concerned to evaluate their effectiveness, and adjust the plans and protocols as needed.
The health sector's preparations for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 come after the great achievements made by the sector over the past years, as Qatar established a strong health system on a global level. The most prominent proof of the success of the health sector in Qatar is its ability to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, as Qatar was the 15th globally and the only Arab country that was included in the German Der Spiegel magazine classification for the countries that dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic in the best way.
The healthcare system in Qatar continued the process of development and improvement. Furthermore, investment in new health facilities, services and technologies has contributed to the development of the health sector infrastructure in the country. With the opening of 10 state-of-the-art hospitals and many new specialised facilities over the past years, the number of Hamad Medical Corporation hospitals has increased to 14 hospitals, featuring the most advanced medical technology in the world.
The number of primary healthcare centres in the public sector also increased to 28 centres affiliated with the Primary Health Care Corporation. Additionally, there are 4 other centres run by the Qatar Red Crescent. E-health services have promoted innovation quickly and effectively, and the healthcare system has become connected through electronic systems that ensure that medical teams have access to patient records in various facilities of the public healthcare system.
Qatar is characterised by advanced services in the field of ambulance and surgical facilities, which contributed to making it one of the best countries in the field of traffic safety. The post-accident response has been improved to reduce fatalities and serious injuries, as the phone response time to an accident was about 6 seconds. It took 7 minutes to reach the accident site inside Doha and 8 minutes outside Doha in 91 percent of cases.
It is important to note that Hamad Medical Corporation has obtained, over the last 15 years, international accreditation for its hospital network by the Joint Commission International (JCI). Hamad Hospital and facilities have obtained more than 40 accreditations, while the Primary Health Care Corporation obtained the Canadian International Accreditation for the third time, in addition to the Award for Patient-Centered Care. Laboratories also obtained the College of American Pathologists (CAP's) Laboratory Accreditation.
