Qatar’s health sector has maintained a strong focus on mental health services and enhancing ease of access to care over the years.

To ensure the wellbeing of the country’s population, the health authorities have intensified efforts to raise awareness on mental health issues while also creating more avenues for the public to seek professional mental health support.

Earlier this year, Qatar launched a dedicated helpline coupled with virtual mental health counseling services to provide support to those dealing with the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“More people have had to cope with COVID-19 impacting their physical and emotional health during these unprecedented times and this has led to many people having to cope with higher than usual levels of anxiety and stress,” said Sheikh Dr Mohamed bin Hamad Al Thani, director of Public Health at the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) on the occasion of World Mental Health Day.

MoPH together with other health sector institutions is today celebrating World Mental Health Day under the theme ‘Mental Health for All; Greater Investment – Greater Access.’

The Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) & Health sector institutions celebrate the World Mental Health Day on Saturday under the theme "Mental Health for All; Greater Investment Greater Access". #QNA pic.twitter.com/VS48X84IST

— Qatar News Agency (@QNAEnglish) October 9, 2020

Speaking about the launch of the mental health helpline, Sheikh Dr Mohamed said, while previously the fear of being stigmatized may have prevented some people to seek an appointment in a clinic, “the launch of the mental health helpline in April 2020 has proven to be immensely successful with people of all ages and nationalities who are looking for advice on coping with stress, anxiety and depression.”

Deputy National Lead for Mental Health and Wellbeing and Executive Director of Operations at Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC), Dr Samya Ahmad Al Abdulla, revealed that since its launch the helpline has dealt with more than 13,000 calls.

“We have found that many people prefer the telephone consultation approach because of the convenience and the relative anonymity in receiving care, especially for those individuals who are concerned about stigma,” she said.

“As a result, we have seen far fewer people miss their scheduled appointments across the public healthcare system in the past six months than when we offered only clinic-based appointments,” she added.

Moreover, with the expansion of services and new options being made available in recent years, there is now greater access to mental health support in the country.

Chair of the Mental Health Service at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC), Dr Majid al-Abdulla said that the appointment of experienced mental health professionals and clinicians have enabled the prioritization of dedicated new patient slots.

“The changes have resulted in an increase in the number of new patients seen and, therefore, waiting times for patients have reduced,” he said.

“We have introduced a triage service with a view to ensuring that patients in need can be seen and guided to the most appropriate place, without compromising the access of those patients with scheduled appointments,” he added.

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