Qatar Health 2009 expects to welcome 5,000 delegates

This event, a combined exhibition and congress, is the first one of its kind in Qatar to provide a high level forum for medical discussions and research. Already more than 2500 delegates have registered to attend.

Held under the patronage of His Highness The Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, the five-day congress will be inaugurated by His Excellency Abdulla Bin Khalid Al-Qahtani, Minister of Health and General Secretary of the Supreme Council for Health on Saturday 12th December 2009.

Qatar Health boasts a packed and stimulating programme featuring 14 tracks covering 16 different medical specialties. A total of 86 top-level international speakers from more than 20 countries, including U.S.A, U.K., China, Australia, Sweden, Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, Italy, Qatar as well as representatives from the World Health Organisation and United Nations, will be participating.

Accredited by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, the Qatar Health Congress commences on Sunday 13 December 2009 and provides unrivalled continuous medical education and training in the form of seminars, workshops and discussions.

"With the country's healthcare expenditure continuing to increase annually, Qatar Health 2009 will be the most exciting medical event of the year. Providing an international forum for delegates to learn about the latest scientific research findings as well as developments in major health-related technologies, attendees will be also be able to evaluate the latest medical devices and technologies at first hand,"

said Dr Abdulwahab Almusleh, Deputy chairman of the event.

"Given that the Qatari healthcare market is worth more than $16bn, we believe this event will help to support the development of this industry now and in years to come."

The five-day Qatar Health exhibition welcomes 140 local and international healthcare companies to the 10,000 sqm Doha Exhibition Center. A cross section of medical equipment and pharmaceutical manufacturers, tele-medicine and healthcare information system providers, booksellers, medical colleges and health-related companies will be participating.

Demonstrating Qatar's commitment to world class medical education, the Qatar Health Education Pavilion will feature Qatar's finest medical education institutions led by Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, CNAQ, Qatar University College of Pharmacy and University of Calgary in Qatar.

Interest amongst sponsors eager to be associated with Qatar Health has been phenomenal and the main sponsoring partners include premier sponsor Commercial Bank, Silver sponsor Ibn Sina and Bronze sponsor Mannai Corporation.

"We are thrilled to bring the Qatari medical community together at Qatar Health 2009, which is designed to be a leading medical exhibition in the region," said Mr. Karim Zarka, CEO of Qatar Expo.

"I am confident Qatar Health 2009 will help companies identify potential partners and inject extra investment in the booming Qatari medical industry."

Despite the economic slowdown in other countries and its effects on healthcare development, healthcare investment in Qatar continues growing uninterrupted with a mixture of public, private and joint-venture initiatives gathering pace and attracting record levels of investment. New healthcare ventures are well represented at Qatar Health 2009 with the Sidra Medical Research Center and several Qatar Science & Technology Park taking part.