Doha: The Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani inaugurated Hamad Medical Corporation's (HMC) new Trauma and Emergency Center, which is one of the largest centers in the region, this morning.
The Amir toured the center's facilities, which has the latest medical equipment and technologies in care and diagnosis fields and oxygen therapy room. He was also briefed on the medical facilities linking the new building with the relevant departments at Hamad General Hospital.
The inauguration was also attended by the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani.
The state-of-the-art Trauma and Emergency Center was opened along with the new Hyperbaric Therapy Unit, which houses a cutting-edge hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber, the first of its kind in Qatar.
The new Trauma and Emergency Center is the largest in the region and marks a significant expansion of trauma and emergency services in Qatar. In addition to a new Emergency Department, it also offers trauma, urgent, and critical care services and features a dedicated ramp for ambulance arrivals at Hamad General Hospital. The Center’s state-of-the-art hyperbaric chamber can hold up to 18 people and provides oxygen therapy for a range of medical conditions as well as decompression treatment for diving accidents.
Commenting on the opening of the new Trauma and Emergency Center, H E Dr Hanan Mohamed Al Kuwari, the Minister of Public Health, said the inauguration represents an important milestone in the provision of emergency and trauma care in Qatar.
“As well as offering the best possible treatment and care, the new Trauma and Emergency Center - at four times the size of the former Emergency Department - also offers a greatly improved patient experience. This new facility will serve as a beacon of excellence in our network of emergency services,” said Dr Al Kuwari.
Hamad Al Khalifa, Chief of Healthcare Facilities also highlighted HMC’s commitment to delivering high-quality trauma and emergency care in Qatar. He said: “HMC continues to expand and improve the care we offer our patients. Today’s opening of the new Trauma and Emergency Center highlights that HMC is not only committed to expansion but is also delivering on this commitment.”
Dr. Abdulla Al Ansari, Acting Chief Medical Officer at HMC drew particular attention to the key role of clinical teams at the new Trauma and Emergency Center in meeting Qatar’s emergency and trauma care needs. He explained: “Not only does the new Center offer a spacious healing environment equipped with the latest technology, but it also benefits from the delivery of care by the very best doctors, nurses, and other clinical staff. These highly trained professionals have been recruited from across the globe and have spent many months preparing for the opening through a number of simulation exercises. Their experience and expertise, coupled with our state-of-the-art facility and ultra-modern equipment, will ensure the best possible care experience.”
Speaking about the emergency services and technology available at the new Trauma and Emergency Center, Dr. Al Ansari said: Those in need of urgent medical care can be received and treated through the Emergency Department on the ground floor and we also have trauma, urgent, and critical care facilities available across the remaining three floors. These all house state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment, including an MRI, ultrasound, and three CT scanners. Our patients will also benefit from a threefold increase in x-ray capacity, compared to the former Emergency Department.”
Walk-in patients arriving at the new Trauma and Emergency Center’s Emergency Department will be triaged upon arrival and after initial assessment and treatment will either be admitted to the hospital or discharged. To further boost capacity, the See and Treat area of the former Emergency Department will also remain open.
The new Trauma and Emergency Center will also expand and improve upon HMC’s capacity to care for patients in need of trauma care with the first floor housing the Hamad Trauma Center, Qatar’s major trauma center. Receiving around 2,000 cases annually, it provides care to people with serious injuries from across Qatar. Its location within the new Trauma and Emergency Center means that patients arriving by ambulance, or helicopter, via the helipad on the adjacent surgical service facility, are now able to speedily access trauma services for immediate care, resuscitation, and stabilization.
The facility also benefits from five trauma and emergency rooms which are fully equipped to be converted into mini operating theaters in the event of a mass casualty incident or an accident requiring immediate surgical intervention. Patients can then be rapidly and seamlessly transferred from there to the Trauma or Surgical Intensive Care Units as well as the operating theaters at Hamad General Hospital via the link bridge on the first floor.
While the ground floor of the new Trauma and Emergency Center is dedicated to walk-in emergencies and the first floor to critical and trauma care patients, the second floor is dedicated to urgent care patients, whilst the third floor has been designed to care for patients requiring isolation or monitoring before being discharged.
