Doha: The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) recently organised a Mental Health Forum in collaboration with the Mental Health Friends Association “Weyak”, as part of efforts to raise public awareness of mental health problems, promote health awareness among community members, familiarise them with the risks of psychological stress and its relationship with other diseases, and strengthen a workplace culture that supports positive communication and acceptance of psychological challenges.
The forum aimed to enhance professional awareness of the importance of mental health as a key factor in improving staff efficiency, boosting workplace productivity and developing work–life balance skills, as well as enabling employees to recognise common work-related pressures and manage them effectively to reduce psychological and occupational burnout.
Ms Masouma Fadel Sada, Assistant Director of the Healthcare Professions Department at the MoPH, said that holding the Mental Health Forum comes within the Ministry’s efforts, in cooperation with its partners, to place mental health at the forefront of health priorities, in the belief that healthcare is not complete without balanced and continuous psychological support provided by competent healthcare practitioners.
She explained that the Healthcare Professions Department grants the necessary licences to practitioners to carry out their work after verifying their professional competence, stressing that healthcare practitioners working in mental health are a fundamental pillar in building a leading model of psychological support in the health sector towards a healthier society.
The forum addressed several key topics, most notably: managing stress in the workplace; occupational burnout through managing the psychological crisis resulting from the work environment; medication management in the care of people with diabetes and ways to overcome social and psychological burdens; and narrative therapy as one of the psychotherapeutic approaches to psychological trauma. The event was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs, Qatar University, the Qatar Diabetes Association and the Family Counselling Centre “Wifaq”.
Source: MoPH
