DOHA: The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) has developed an advanced occupational and environmental medicine programme in collaboration with the World Health Organization's (WHO) Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean. The programme is one of the outputs of the occupational health objectives outlined in the Second National Health Strategy.
MoPH said that a work plan has been established to implement the advanced programme as part of the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Initiative, a priority under the National Health Strategy 2024–2030.
A scientific committee, comprising MoPH staff, an expert from the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, and WHO representatives, was formed to study and outline a mechanism for the programme’s national implementation and to identify trainees, targeting specialists and consultants in occupational medicine, family medicine, and community medicine.
The advanced occupational and environmental medicine programme is the first of its kind in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region.
In this context, the MoPH recently organized a training workshop for trainers on the advanced occupational and environmental medicine programme, in collaboration with the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean and the WHO Country Office in Qatar.
The workshop was part of the strategy to build national capacity in the field of occupational health in Qatar. The Ministry's Occupational Health Section, in partnership with the WHO, developed the advanced occupational and environmental medicine curriculum to equip healthcare professionals with the skills necessary to identify and manage occupational injuries and diseases, as well as to conduct occupational and environmental exposure assessments.
The workshop aimed to update knowledge and skills in occupational and environmental medicine by sharing experiences among participants from diverse work environments. It reviewed and clarified concepts such as occupational diseases and work-related illnesses, standardized the understanding of occupational health and safety concepts, and addressed professional practices in preventive and therapeutic occupational and environmental medicine. It also identified challenges in applying these practices at the national level.
In his opening remarks at the workshop, Acting Director of the Health Promotion Department at MoPH Dr Salah Alyafei welcomed WHO representatives and praised the collaboration between the Ministry, the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, and the WHO Country Office in Qatar in achieving the Qatar National Vision 2030.
He emphasized that this training reflects the Ministry's commitment to improving the health and well-being of workers, noting that workers' health directly contributes to the growth and development of the national economy and promotes sustainable development.
Dr Alyafei stressed the importance of trainees’ efforts in enhancing their knowledge and skills to build the capacity of health practitioners nationwide. He highlighted their significant responsibility in transferring knowledge and skills during the national implementation of the advanced occupational and environmental medicine programme, underlining the shared goal of fostering healthier, safer, and more productive work environments.
In turn, WHO Representative in Qatar Dr Rayana Bou Haka highlighted the importance of the training workshop in achieving one of the shared objectives between the WHO and MoPH, such as implementing programmes to enhance knowledge and skills for addressing and preventing workplace risks across various sectors. She noted that lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic underscored the need to improve response plans to protect workers.
For her part, Occupational Health Officer at the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean Dr Rola Imam commended Qatar for leading the training of trainers in implementing the advanced occupational and environmental medicine programme. She stressed the importance of incorporating participants' feedback to refine the training programme for eventual implementation across the Eastern Mediterranean Region.
As for Head of the Occupational Health Section at MoPH Dr Mohammed Ali Al Hajjaj, he stated that the workshop was part of the action plan for building the capacity of health practitioners, which includes various training phases to enhance knowledge in occupational and environmental medicine among primary healthcare physicians and other specialists, thus supporting and improving occupational health practices and service delivery.
Al Hajjaj added that past training workshops had successfully introduced simplified programmes to train primary healthcare and corporate doctors and provided an overview of implementing the advanced programme and its key components. During the workshop’s interactive sessions, participants enhanced their clinical training skills, engaged in planning to address workplace health challenges through group activities and presentations, and trained 19 experienced specialists and consultants in occupational health to serve as trainers in occupational and environmental medicine.
