The World Innovation Summit for Health (WISH), an initiative of Qatar Foundation (QF), has announced that ‘Islamic Ethics and Palliative Care’ will be one of the nine research topics on focus at the 2018 WISH Conference. WISH 2018 will be held at the Qatar National Convention Centre (QNCC) from 13 to 14 November.
World Health Organisation (WHO) defines palliative care as an approach that leads to the improvement of the quality of life of patients and their families facing the problem of terminal or life-threatening illness. This is achieved through the prevention of suffering by means of early identification and pain management. Palliative care also tackles other problems of well-being such as physical pain, psychosocial unrest, and spiritual treatment.
In the months leading up to WISH 2018, an international group of experts will investigate the ethical challenges and questions on palliative care. The group’s findings, to be published in a report ahead of WISH 2018, will be discussed in depth during a panel session at the event. In addition to exploring and analysing the key ethical challenges of palliative care from an Islamic perspective, the aim of the academic research is to produce policy recommendations that can have a positive impact on the management of palliative care in Qatar and in other areas as well.
Dr Mohammed Ghaly, professor of Islam and Biomedical Ethics at the Research Centre for Islamic Legislation and Ethics, College of Islamic Studies at Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), leads the WISH Islamic Ethics and Palliative Care research group.
Islamic ethics and biomedical sciences are Dr Ghaly’s main specialisation. He is the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Islamic Ethics (published by Brill). He has lectured on the topic of Islamic bioethics at many prestigious universities worldwide, including at the Imperial College London and Oxford University. He is a previous fellow of the Kenney Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University in the US.
According to Dr Ghaly, the emerging field of palliative care demonstrates the significance of treating a person as an indivisible whole, consisting of not only body but also thoughts, convictions, and beliefs, rather than only treating the strictly medical aspects of their disease. He said that this fact has significantly contributed to bridging the gap between medicine and ethics and opens up new frontiers of interdisciplinary enquiry.
Our forum will examine the ethical questions within the sensitive topic of palliative care, focused on insights from an Islamic tradition. The prospective study will include discussions surrounding international deliberations, the regional experience, and the relevance of Islamic ethical discourse.
It will focus on finding the right balance between standard healthcare practice and Islamic traditions in order to collectively and holistically provide the sought-after guidelines and policy recommendations in the context of healthcare delivery in Qatar and the region.’
WISH CEO Sultana Afdhal said that every healthcare decision made is influenced by moral and ethical codes.
When it comes to healthcare service provision, physicians, patients, and their caregivers all need guidance on how to align their moral compass with the best course of action. It is for that reason that WISH has featured discussions surrounding Islamic ethics and health.
This year, we are delighted to be working with HBKU and once again tackling one of the most sensitive and thorniest ethical issues: end-of-life care. I hope that the findings and subsequent policy recommendations of our research can be used to guide future healthcare policy decisions and help healthcare practitioners in their interactions with patients and families dealing with the often difficult decisions associated with palliative care.’
As with previous summits, WISH 2018 will once again gather the world’s healthcare leaders at QNCC to highlight and address some of the world’s most pressing healthcare challenges. WISH, which hosts its Doha summit biennially, has quickly established itself as a major highlight on the global healthcare calendar for thousands of high-level policy-makers, academics, and professionals. It has also become a key platform for the dissemination of healthcare innovation and best practices.
WISH 2018 will feature nine research forums, each led by an internationally renowned expert in their field. Between them, the forums will highlight and address some of the world’s most pressing challenges across topics that cover medical, ethical, technological, and humanitarian aspects of healthcare.
As part of an ambitious programme for WISH 2018, the summit will also showcase global organisations that shape the design, delivery, and financing of healthcare. The summit will provide a specially selected group of young innovators with a platform, to share their novel ideas with a global audience of healthcare policy-makers and influencers.
WISH 2018 will also feature reports on its ongoing impact on issues previously highlighted at the summit, such as autism, and will feature an increased array of community-based events across Qatar. Examples of healthcare innovation in action will be presented within ‘The WISH Hub’ – an interactive space that will showcase novel healthcare products, host informal discussions, and provide hands-on experience of technologies such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality.
For more information about WISH 2018, visit their website at wish.org.qa.
Related Link:
World Innovation Summit for Health 2018
