Kuwait Hospital in Sharjah organizes workshop to help fight hospital-acquired infections

UAE, May 30, 2016- The Ministry of Health and Prevention will be supporting the Kuwait Hospital in Sharjah in organizing a workshop entitled “(no damage no harm)” at Al Qasimia University. The workshop aims to train medical, nursing and technical staff of government and private hospitals on the issue infection control and has been organized in line with directives of the government to further enhance and develop national health services. The workshop was conducted in the presence of His Excellency Dr. Youssif Al Serkal, Assistant Undersecretary for the Ministry of Health & Prevention Hospitals Sector, and Mr. Mohammed Abdullah Al Zarouni, Director of Sharjah Medical zone and Mrs. Amna Karam Director of Kuwait Hospital in Sharjah, and Dr. Najiba Abdul Razak Chairman of the Committee for the Prevention and Infection in the Ministry.

Dr. Yousef Al Serkal emphasized the importance of this workshop, which was held in line with the Ministry’s strategic efforts to reduce the risk of infection and to ensure the safety of patients and staff at health facilities. This workshop is an important step towards further enhancing medical services to meet the national indicators and further expand the Ministry’s facilities in accordance with the international standards. The move falls in line with the objectives set forth by the National Agenda in line with UAE Vision 2021, which aims to ensure that all health facilities and the Ministry receive international accreditation by 2021. 

Dr. Serkal, mentioned that hospital-acquired infections are the major challenges facing the medical facilities, as it is often caused by microbes and new bacteria. He further noted it is for this reason that health care providers must work diligently to prevent the spread of bacteria and its occurrence to avoid complications. He highlighted the Ministry’s implementation of a system to monitor and investigate hospital-acquired infections noting that the Ministry effectively succeeded in reducing the acquired infection rate in hospitals through the adoption and application of policies and procedures from international organizations. This reflected in the statistics and reports of the World Health Organization and the Center for Disease Control in the US which noted that the rate of hospital-acquired infections in hospitals affiliated with the Ministry is only about 3 per cent, which is the second lowest in the world.

Mrs. Amna Karam noted that the workshop organized by the Health Education Department and the Committee on Infection Control in Kuwait Hospital, aims to ensure the safety of patients and staff in healthcare facilities by preventing or reducing the proportion of infection gained from residency and work in hospitals and give workers across the organization with the necessary skills to prevent the infection and promote patient safety across all health facilities.

The workshop covered several key topics and Dr. Zakaria Al Attal, first institutional development and international accreditation adviser, MOHAP, delivered lecture on infection control program according to the requirements of international accreditation. While Dr. Shaima Hussein, chief of laboratory department and infection control in Kuwait Hospital, spoke on blood infection. The work shop also included a lecture by Dr. Ahmed Al Suwaidi Artistic, Director of Kuwait Hospital, on how to deal with the treatment of wounds after operations, as well as a lecture by Dr. Hala Fouad Consultant Microbiology Al Baraha Hospital regarding basic precautions to prevent the spread of infection in hospitals.

Dr. Thomas, Head of Endoscopes in Kuwait Hospital discussed respiratory infections and how to avoid them; Dr. Sana Zahra, Emergency Doctor in Kuwait Hospital spoke on how hospital staff should take precautions to avoid infection while using sharp medical equipment; Dr. Mubarak Zine El Abidine mystical doctor of Kuwait Hospital discussed how to avoid infection from a urinary catheter; and Dr. Ahmed Ajwa, anesthesiologist at Dubai Health Authority, discussed with infection attendants regarding the installation of central blood catheter.

The workshop featured competitions for participants who were quizzed on key information about how to avoid infection and to combat their spread in hospitals. Dr. Yousef Al Serkal and Mr. Mohammed Abdullah Al Zarouni concluded the event by honoring the speakers and organizers for a successful workshop.