Latest Qatar News
Qatar announces phase out of private clinics by general practitioners
All clinics in Qatar, currently operated by general practitioners will be phased out in three years, warned a senior official at the Supreme Council of Health (SCH) yesterday.
All the physicians operating such facilities in Qatar will have to possess a specialist degree and that has been made mandatory. General Practitioners running clinics will be granted three years time to upgrade their status to that of specialist, or move into other licensed clinics or hospitals, it has been announced.
According to Dr. Jamal Rashid Al Khanji, Acting Director of Medical Licensing Department at SCH, a proposal to phase out these clinics has been on cards for quite some time. Such a measure aims to upgrade the quality of hospitals in Qatar. However, this cannot be done all of a sudden, as there are several such clinics, and several low-income workers are dependent on such facilities. The decision will therefore be implemented in a phased manner.
Several of these physicians may even be good at their jobs or have high reputation in public, but, there are also several complaints about few clinics. A specialist degree is mandatory for physicians operating such amenities to ensure quality healthcare, Dr. Al Khanji said.
Such practitioners are given several options before their clinics are finally phased out. They can either obtain a specialist degree or accept jobs in other facilities.
The first hospital in Qatar, which exclusively caters to expatriate workers’, will be ready in three years time. Few of these physicians can get jobs there or in other similar amenities, Al Khanji said.
Posted on 1/3/2010
Social Bookmarking
