The 1st Qatar
International Diabetic Foot Conference, a three-day event, started at
the Ritz-Carlton Doha, on April 7, 2006. Chairperson of HMC Board of
Directors and conference patron, Dr. Latifa Al Houty delivered the opening address.
The opening session was atten-ded by Mr. Turki Mohd. Al Khater, HMC Managing Director, Dr. Abdul-la Al Hamaq, Executive Director of Qatar Diabetes Association, and Dr. Abdul Rahman Salem Al Kuwari, Head of the Gulf Group for the Study of Diabetes (GGSD), with the participation of about 500 physicians from inside and outside Qatar, in addition to nine experts from USA, UK, Canada, and Cyprus. The most prominent of the panel of international experts who delivered lectures on various aspects of this issue of major concern for diabetics are the professor of surgery at the Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in Chicago, Dr. David Arms
trong, the honorary president of the International Podiatrists Association of Hong Kong and Dr. Andrew Boul-ton, University of Manchester’s Professor of Medicine.
Topics such as infection, epidemiology, vascular diseases, foot clinics, education and psychology, podiatry and biomechanics, wound care, foot surgery, and risk factors were covered, where 15 papers were discussed throughout the three days of this international event, eight of these were presented by physicians and statisticians from the State of Qatar.
Four workshops on treatment of diabetic foot by antibiotics, podiatric care and wearing of suitable shoes, preventive patient teaching, and advanced wound healing concepts were held as part of the conference. Many nurses from HMC’s Podiatric services attended these workshops and received training on the latest techniques of podiatric care and treatment.
Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Qatar Diabetes Association (QDA) and the Gulf Group for the Study of Diabetes (GGSD) organized a symposium on New Insights in Diabetes Management, on the second day of the conference.
The day before the conference, April 6, 2006, a swarming procession took place at Doha Cornish, with a purpose to increase awareness among the public on diabetes as a major health threat. The Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) and Qatar Diabetes Association (QDA) organized the event, with the participation of many national entities and governmental departments.
