20 December 2020 – In line with WHO’s commitment to strengthen primary health care (PHC) the WHO country office in Oman held its annual meeting with the Primary Health Care Department in the Ministry of Health on 17 December 2020.

 

The meeting was inaugurated and chaired by HE Dr Jean Jabbour, WHO Representative to Oman, and Dr Said Al-Lamki, Director General of PHC, and was attended by senior members of the PHC department.

 

Dr Jean Jabbour expressed WHO’s appreciation and support to the efforts of the Ministry of Health, especially in the past year in general and the area of PHC in particular. He stated, “The COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected lives and livelihoods in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. It has interrupted essential services for immunization, infectious and chronic diseases, maternal health and more, putting millions at risk. An emergency is not the time to stall investment in public health. On the contrary, as part of the response to COVID-19, countries must invest more and invest better in strong health systems to ‘Protect Everyone’ – during and after the pandemic. Strong PHC can provide people with the quality care they need, right in their communities.”

Dr Said Al-Lamki, Director General of Primary Health Care, explained that to achieve Health for All by All, it was critical that no one was left behind. He said, “PHC has always been a priority for Oman, even decades before this current pandemic. Our frontline caregivers have always led the charge for Health for All by All, and it is our responsibility to make sure they have the education, training, resources and support they need to enable them and protect them.”

 

The meeting reviewed progress in 2020 of implementation of the WHO-Ministry of Health Country Support Plan and 2021 implementation of priority activities. It also discussed priority interventions for the new biennium 2022–2023 and the Country Cooperation Strategy 2021–2025.