Health
From The Report: Qatar 2014
View in Online Reader

Qatar’s health care sector is undergoing vigorous change, for both good and bad reasons. The good news is that Qataris are living longer. The bad is that more are living with lifestyle-related chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer. To meet this challenge, the government has been making sizeable investments in health care: Qatar now spends more per capita on health than any other GCC country, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). A 2013 announcement stated that Qatar will funnel $10.4bn into health care over the next five years – a lurch upwards from the recent annual average of $367m. Conducting research, furnishing staff for clinics, supplying pharmaceuticals, building new facilities and running IT services all hold opportunities for private sector involvement.
This chapter contains an interview with Abdulla bin Khalid Al Qahtani, Minister of Health and Secretary-General, Supreme Council of Health.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Gradual overhaul: As Qatar’s population ages, a state-led transformation is under way
OBG
plus

Qatar’s health care sector is undergoing vigorous change, for both good and bad reasons. The good news is that Qataris are living longer. The bad is that more are living with lifestyle-related chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer. To meet this challenge, the government has been making sizeable investments in health care: Qatar now spends more per capita on health than any other GCC country, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). Even more spending is on the way.…

Analysis

Farming pharmaceuticals: The government leads an effort to push generics over branded drugs
OBG
plus

One beneficiary of the roll-out of Qatar’s new national health service will be the pharmaceutical industry. As part of the new health care system, the Supreme Council of Health (SCH) is leading an effort to promote generic drugs in partnership with Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), the Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) and other providers. Known as the Healthcare Products project, it should boost the use of generic drugs in Qatar, which the SCH prefers to the costlier branded type, provided…

Interview

OBG talks to Abdulla bin Khalid Al Qahtani, Minister of Health, and Secretary-General, Supreme Council of Health (SCH)
OBG
plus

Interview:Abdulla bin Khalid Al Qahtani How is the SCH working to combat the incidence of lifestyle-related diseases in Qatar? ABDULLA BIN KHALID AL QAHTANI: The global proliferation of chronic noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer and respiratory illness is an epidemic with common risk factors such as poor nutrition, lack of physical activity and smoking. In conjunction with the government and non-governmental organisations, the SCH developed the…