The HCAC Second Quality Health Care Conference and Exhibition kicks off

Dr. Mahmoud Al-Sheyyab, Chairman of the Conference Steering Committee and Former Minister of Health, stated, "His Majesty's support of this conference is an indication of the importance of leading change and driving quality in health care, embracing patient safety in Jordan and the Arab world, and ultimately underlining the Kingdom's position as a regional center of excellence in health care."

Over the next two days, 17 renowned Jordanian, regional and international speakers will provide their expertise, insight and know-how on the importance, value and benefits to the Arab world for 'Building and Sustaining a Culture of Quality and Patient Safety.'

Paul Barach, Chief Executive Officer, J Bara Associates, will be delivering the key-note speech of the HCAC Second Quality Health Care Conference & Exhibition.

His focus on the core role that quality improvement plays across the healthcare sector on all levels will set the stage for the rich program over the next couple of days, stirring interesting discussions between the participants.

Dr. Mahmoud Sarhan, Vice Chairman of the Conference Steering Committee, stated, "Patient safety and quality in health care have been the foremost issues worldwide on both decision and policy makers' agendas, and therefore our region has to benefit from others experiences and ensure that health care facilities have the systems and a culture in place that promotes the highest standards in terms of quality and patient safety. To that effect, the HCAC is hosting the Second Quality Health Care Conference & Exhibition to ensure that systems and facilities are safe and striving for continuous quality improvement."

Today, four plenary sessions will be discussed by professionals in the health care sector around the world, and they include: The culture of quality and why is it important; who is responsible for building a culture of quality and patient safety; change management and how to build a culture of quality; and regional examples of culture change.

Tomorrow, the sessions will focus on the leadership's role in sustaining the culture of quality and patient safety; the role of patients in sustaining a culture of quality and patient safety; tools or systems for sustaining a culture of quality and patient safety; and the final session will bring all the discussions together to share ideas on the future of quality and patient safety in the Arab world.

The second HCAC Quality Health Care Conference & Exhibition received support from renowned organizations including Hikma Pharmaceuticals as the Diamond Sponsor, Capital Bank and NOVARTIS as the Bronze Sponsors, and KPMG, Al Khalidi Medical Center, Bank al Etihad and the Specialty Hospital as supporters.

The Health Care Accreditation Council is a not-for-profit private shareholding company established in Jordan since 2007 and aims at raising the level of healthcare quality and patient safety through consulting, accreditation and capacity building in Jordan and the region.

HCAC is the 5th entity in the world and the first in the Arab world to have received all three accreditations set by the ISQua International Accreditation Program for Health Care Accreditation bodies, and they are ISQua Accredited Organization, ISQua Accredited Training Program and ISQua Accredited Standards.

In addition to standard development and accrediting healthcare institutions, HCAC focuses on capacity building, leadership development, skills development, patient safety and patient centred care. In recognition of the impact of the delivery of services across those specialties to the health care sector in Jordan, HCAC has also reached out its consulting services to healthcare institutions and bodies in the region.