EFFICIENT AND EFFECTIVE IMPACT ON OVERALL WELL-BEING

THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH PROVIDES FREE BASIC UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE TO ALL ITS CITIZENS

THE YEAR 2022 has been exceptional for the health sector in the Sultanate of Oman. It received the World Health Organization certification for the Elimination of Mother-to-child Transmission (EMTCT) of HIV and syphilis. With this rare feat, the country became the first to be validated for EMTCT in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.

By receiving this validation, the Sultanate of Oman achieved the global health strategy for the period 2022-2030, which aims to end MTCT of HIV in at least 50 countries by 2025, and in 100 countries by 2030.

Currently, the Sultanate of Oman is preparing to host the 3rd Global High-level Ministerial Conference on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) in Muscat on November 24-25.

The conference is organised by the government of the Sultanate of Oman, represented by the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources in cooperation with the Quadripartite Alliance formed by the United Nations to monitor the antibiotic resistance — World Health Organization (WHO), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and Gulf Health Council for the Cooperation Council States.

The conference is expected to provide an opportunity for simulating the interactive dialogue on the “One Health” action to address the AMR pandemic. Therefore, the theme of the conference this year is “The AMR Pandemic: from Policy to One Health Action”, which aims to accelerate tackling the antimicrobial resistance at the national, regional and global levels, as well as to enhance international cooperation.

Around 50 representatives from different countries are expected to take part in the conference representing Human Health, Animal Health and Environment. The Directors-general and Presidents of WHO, FAO, OIE and UNEP are participating in the conference. Renowned global experts representing health, animal, environment, economic, and agricultural aspects have also been invited.

The Ministry of Health launched this year, 2022, the National Tuberculosis Manual. The National TB Manual is prepared by the Directorate-general for Disease Surveillance and Control in collaboration with experts in various fields related to prevention, diagnosis, treatment, pharmacy, and primary, secondary and tertiary care provision. The Manual is part of implementing the National Strategy for Elimination of Tuberculosis and is aligned with its pillars, namely Detect, Treat, Prevent and Promote. It represents a scientific reference to the health workers in this field.

According to the specialists at the DGDSC, the event is a culmination of years of continuous joint work with the healthcare workers concerned with TB in public and private sectors to provide better healthcare for various community segments.

The specialist affirmed that TB is preventable and curable. All members in the community must be aware of this fact to end stigmatisation and discrimination of TB, adding that awareness should be also raised on the importance of diagnosing and treating latent TB in high-risk groups such as close contact with TB cases, particularly children, people coming from high-incidence countries, as well immunocompromised patients.

The Sultanate of Oman has launched the National Strategy for Elimination of Tuberculosis, which will be carried out in phases to achieve a reduction in the incidence rate of TB to fewer than 100 cases per million population by 2035 to progress further towards “pre-elimination” of TB.

The Sultanate of Oman provides free healthcare for all its citizens, and this goal is supported by the primary medical care available through health centres, extended health centres and hospitals in the wilayat. While the regional referral hospitals mainly provide secondary medical care, the national referral hospitals are the Royal Hospital, Khoula Hospital, and Al Nahdha Hospital, providing tertiary medical care. The requests and requirements for treatment are processed by Treatment Abroad Committee.

Oman’s Ministry of Health is closely collaborating with the WHO with regard to its 2030 agenda for sustainable Development (SDGOS), Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and implementation of Integrated and people-centred Health Services (IPCHS). The Ministry of Health is also a member of the Gulf Health Council for the Cooperation Council States. The government sector works in partnership with private healthcare.

The public, too, has been showing their dedication through blood donation. MOH runs the Central Blood Bank — storing and distributing blood and related products. The blood bank also conducts regular nationwide campaigns for blood donation.

The Department of Blood Banks Services successfully raised the voluntary blood donation rate to 96 per cent at the level of Central Blood Bank in addition to increasing the number of collected blood units to 14 per cent in 2021 compared to 2020.

More than 300 blood donation campaigns are conducted every year.

Even though the number of donors has been increasing over the years, the demand for blood units and their components have also been increasing steadily from 10 per cent to 15 per cent annually.

According to the officials at Blood Bank, “Before 2020, the daily requirement for blood units was not more than 100 units per day in the Central Blood Bank, but currently, the need for blood has reached 140 units per day.”

They added that cases which require transfusion of blood or one of its components are injured in road accidents or disasters, bleeding during surgeries, malignant blood diseases, bone marrow failure, some cases of genetic blood diseases, some cancerous tumours and some cases of childbirth.

On the other hand, several cases are prevented from blood donation and are divided into two types; temporary and permanent. The temporary cases include the person who had undergone for transfusion of blood or one of its components for one year, a person who donated blood less than threemonth ago, a person whose tooth was removed 72 hours before the donation, a person who has mouth, nose, or under skin bleeding (if it is not a medical condition), a person who had a minor operation in less than six months before the donation, the pregnant woman who had delivered one-year ago.

Individuals who are prevented from blood donation include persons infected with communicable diseases such as AIDS or all types of viral hepatitis or syphilis, the person suffering from chronic diseases like cancer, heart diseases, epilepsy, diabetes, and other diseases that need continuous treatment, persons with blood diseases like anemia and thalassemia, and persons infected with allergic diseases such as asthma or have drug allergies.

The number of blood banks and centres of the MOH is 13 across the Sultanate of Oman. In addition to the Central Blood Bank in Bausher, there are blood banks in hospitals like Rustaq, Sohar, Al Buraimi, Ibri, Nizwa, Ibra, Jaalan Bani Bu Ali, Sur, Salalah, Khasab, Dibba and Masirah.

Last year saw 95.5 per cent voluntary blood donation. The total number of blood donors in MOH institutions is 67,884. However, there are still people who are hesitant to donate, and the total number of people who are reluctant to donate blood in MOH institutions is 81,937.

In 2021, 81 per cent of the blood donors were Omanis. The collected blood units in the Central Blood Bank in 2021 is 32,754 compared to 28,613 blood units in 2020.

CURRENTLY, THE SULTANATE OF OMAN IS PREPARING TO HOST THE 3RD GLOBAL HIGH-LEVEL MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE (AMR) IN MUSCAT ON NOVEMBER 24-25