HMC honors CBQ’s role in expansion of HGH Lithotripsy Unit

Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) honored the Commercial Bank of Qatar (CBQ) on Thursday June 16 for the contribution it has made to support the expansion of the Lithotripsy Unit at Hamad General Hospital (HGH). The ceremony, which also celebrates the newly expanded facility, took place at HGH and was attended by HMC Managing Director Dr Hanan Al Kuwari, Mr Abdulla Al Raisi from CBQ, HMC clinicians and executives, and other distinguished guests.

“We extend our earnest gratitude to the management of the Commercial Bank of Qatar for their important role in this project,” said Dr Hanan Al Kuwari in her address at the ceremony. “This helps us achieve our aim to provide the most advanced healthcare technology and equipment at HMC, and enables our clinicians and other healthcare providers to deliver the best care possible to the people of Qatar.” Dr Al Kuwari also congratulated the Lithotripsy team for the development.

The newly expanded HGH Lithotripsy Unit now includes a larger waiting area, reception area and preparation area, which now accommodates four beds. Besides the space expansion of the facility, the unit has also acquired a new extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy (ESWL) machine, which offers non-invasive treatment of kidney stones by using shock waves to break the stones from outside the body.

“This non-invasive procedure means there is less risk for the patient than using surgery to remove the stones. We are breaking the stones without surgery, so there is no cutting or bleeding, and the patient can see immediate results,” said Dr Abdulla Al Naimi, Consultant Urologist and Head of Urology Section at HGH. “The patient can come to the hospital, undergo the procedure and go home on the same day.”

The treatment session takes about 45 to 60 minutes depending on the size of the stones. After the procedure, the patient will be under observation for two to three hours before discharge.

“We first started using this technology in the 90s. We acquired our second machine in 2004, and we now have the latest machine,” said Dr Al Naimi. “Our waiting time now is one month, and we expect to further reduce this to one week. We have been delivering a good number of procedures per day, which is about eight to ten cases. This new development will enhance our capacity and help us increase the number of procedures we can do, further improving the waiting time for patients in need of this procedure.”

“We also expect another new machine in three months, which will replace the old machine,” Dr Al Naimi added.

Dr Khalid Al Rumaihi, Assistant Head of the Urology Section, said that besides lithotripsy, the unit can also now perform other procedures such as endoscopy. “We are happy that HMC is committed to providing state-of-the-art facilities and services for our patients. These developments will enable us to deliver even better services and care to our patients, and to cope with the increase in population in Qatar.”