Ministry of Health & Prevention celebrates World Family Doctor Day

UAE, May 18, 2017-The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHAP) represented by its Health Centres and Clinics Sector recently organized an event to celebrate World Family Doctor Day at the Ministry’s office in Dubai. The event was attended by H.E. Dr. Hussein Abdel Rahman Al Rand, Assistant Undersecretary of MOHAP’s Health Centers and Clinics Sector, and H.E. Awadh Seghayer Al Ketbi, Assistant Undersecretary for Support Services, Dr. Ayesha Suhail, Director of the Primary Healthcare Department, and Dr. Haifa Fares, Director of the Family Medicine Residency program.

The gathering aimed to recognize the important role played by family physicians in healthcare systems around the world. The international event has achieved momentum as a great opportunity to recognize the efforts of family physicians to provide personalized, comprehensive, and ongoing personal health care to their patients. It also honors the progress of family medicine, and family physicians all over the world.

Al Rand noted that World Family Doctor Day salutes family physicians and their contributions to curative and preventative healthcare services as valuable members of the healthcare system. He said that the Ministry is committed to providing the UAE with the best healthcare services according to the highest international standards and in adherence with the directive of the World Health Organization (WHO) to provide one family doctor for every 1,000 people. This contributes to increasing the level of health, as family medicine has become a measure of the quality of healthcare provided to the community. 

Fares stated that World Family Doctor Day reflects the attention given by the WHO to family doctors and the quality of services they provide to achieve sustainable healthcare. Studies have shown that countries that have adopted the primary health care and family medicine systems have decreased negative health indicators and lowered the cost of healthcare, contributing to the overall health of the community.