Middle East healthcare to grow 16% p.a., demand for new technology solutions

HIMSS Middle East Health IT Leadership Summit, a new, executive level forum for education, collaboration and dialogue, will introduce the latest healthcare IT practices along with the region’s most advanced healthcare technology providers during a three-day run from November 15 to 17, 2009 at the Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort in Muscat, Oman. The Summit offers a distinct networking and B2B platform that leverages the growth potential of the Middle East's USD 74 bln healthcare sector, which has been projected to expand by up to 16% annually.
Organised under the patronage of the Ministry of Health of Oman, the summit will also gather key government officials and healthcare and technology leaders to discuss the latest innovations and strategies to advance the quality of healthcare for all citizens in the region.
“Major areas of focus in the program include the technological implications of major insurance implementations and the total investment required for health IT,” said Abdul Rahman A.S. Al-Tauqi, co-chair of the summit and Director General of IT at the Omani Ministry of Health. “It is critical that senior decision makers understand the system-wide implications of health IT and how it can bring value to all healthcare stakeholders.”
The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) is a healthcare-stakeholder membership organization focused on providing global leadership for the optimal use of IT and management systems for the betterment of healthcare. Founded in 1961 with offices in Chicago, Washington D.C., Brussels and Singapore, HIMSS has more than 23,000 individual members, of whom 73% work in patient care delivery settings. HIMSS also includes over 380 corporate members and 30 not-for-profit organisations that share our mission of transforming healthcare through the effective use of information technology and management systems. HIMSS frames and leads healthcare public policy and industry practices through its educational, professional development, and advocacy initiatives designed to promote information and management systems’ contributions to ensuring quality patient care.