Amiri Diwan (Royal Palace), Doha, Qatar
April 16, 2017
After the official welcome ceremony, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte was ushered inside the Amiri Diwan (Royal Palace) together with His Highness Sheikh Tamim Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani for a bilateral meeting with their respective official delegation.
The President is in the State of Qatar for a visit, the final leg of his journey to the Middle East.
In an interview with Philippine Ambassador to Qatar Alan L. Timbayan, he talked about the successful stories of Filipino professionals in Qatar. Apart from the skilled, administrative, and educational fields, Filipinos are also thriving in medicine and health care services.
As such, the Qatar Council for Healthcare Practitioners (QCHP) recently released the updated Approved Specialty Qualifications List for Physicians in the state. A fruit from the initiative of the Filipino Medical Association in Qatar (FMAQ), Filipino medical and dental professionals are now recognized in their respective fields, prior to the former set-up where they were only allowed to practice as general practitioners and dental assistants.
The very first Filipino hospital in Qatar is also anticipated to rise in 2018, a polyclinic facility that is the product of the joint efforts of the Medical Mission Group (MMG) Hospital and Health Service Cooperative, and the Philippine Business Council-Qatar.
“Filipinos will definitely benefit in receiving hospital services from health care professionals who speak their language and at the same time, avail of the quality service we get from professionals in the Philippines,” Ambassador Timbayan said.
In the signing ceremonies that would follow the bilateral meeting, an agreement in health care cooperation is one of the expected documents to be inked by Health (DOH) Secretary Paulyn Jean Rossel-Ubial and Minister of Public Health Hanan Mohamed Al Kuwari. The recognition of Filipino medical and dental practitioners and the proposed construction of the polyclinic hospital fall under this agreement.
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