The increasing cases of diabetes in the Gulf region will be one of the main topics of a conference here starting Feb.9. Delegates will include doctors, specialists and consultants. The conference is being hosted by King Saud University, in cooperation with the Health Affairs Department at the National Guard Hospital and Executive Office of the Health Ministers Council of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. The three-day conference, with the theme “Diabetes, it is time to work”, will discuss several important issues related to the disease. In particular, discussion will also focus on the Gulf countries, where the number of diabetes patients has increased dramatically recently. “The scientific program of the conference will highlight the magnitude of the problem in the Gulf states. This is one of the most important public health problems globally, as well as one of the most serious chronic diseases facing health systems, that is why it is a priority of the health sector to start planning to face this dangerous disease,” said Dr. Abdulaziz Bin Abdullah Al-Tuwaim, head of the conference's organizing committee. “The conference aims to actively participate in the prevention and control of diabetes with the aid of expertise in the Gulf and the rest of the world.” According to Al-Tuwaim, the conference aims to increase the knowledge and skills of doctors and health practitioners through specialized workshops, lectures and research presented at the conference. Another aim of the conference is to strengthen communication between organizations and experts, regional and global leadership and to keep pace with global developments in the treatment of diabetes, said Al-Tuwaim. Dr. Khaled Bin Abdullah Al-Taieb, Director of the Diabetes Center at King Abdulaziz Medical City and Head of the Scientific Committee of the Conference, said delegates are expected to highlight a number of important issues. He said the scientific committee will have two scientists who will discuss diabetes in children and adults respectively. The conference will include workshops for those people suffering from the disease.
