SCH Launches Second Round of the Health Utilization and Expenditure Survey

Doha, May 03 (QNA) - The Supreme Council of Health (SCH) is collaborating with the Qatar University's Social and Economic Survey Research Institute (SESRI) on the 2014 Health Utilization and Expenditure Survey (HUES) a nation-wide effort to assess the health utilization, expenditure and health services in Qatar, as well as to identify areas of distinction and improvement. The Survey, which is initiated and sponsored by the SCH, is set to run till June this year and will cover issues that relate to the utilization of health services, health insurance coverage, expenditures on health for individuals and families, satisfaction levels and access to services provided by the health care sector. The eight sections of the questionnaire will also include demographic, socio-economic and behavioural components. This survey will be conducted through personal, home based, interviews with randomly selected respondents. Approximately 4,000 households and individuals will be selected from various segments of society, including residents and expatriates. The teams use latest techniques in data collection, which allow the interviews to be completed in the shortest possible time and ensure a complete privacy of data provided. The first round of this survey was conducted in 2012. This year, enhanced survey questions are used to gain an in-depth understanding of Qatar's current healthcare system. "As with the first round, the results of the survey will enable the decision makers to further enhance the design of evidence-based health policies, which are based on the population's input. The second round of the survey allows to relate to and assess the progress of transformation in the health care system in Qatar," said Dr Faleh Mohammed Hussein, while calling on the targeted segments to co-operate with the project. The survey, believes SESRI Director and Qatar University's Associate Vice President for Research Dr. Darwish Alemadi, is a vast contribution to the national advancement of private and public health care systems: "Through the active participation of our respondents, we gain better knowledge of current practices and local impressions of the Qatari healthcare system. This information is extremely valuable for the progression and development of the system. Academically, researchers would draw on this information and utilize it within the context of social science studies." All answers provided by respondents will be kept strictly confidential and anonymous. (QNA)