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Top French orthopedic surgeon Dr. Michel Onimus from France recently visited Hamad Medical Corporation 's ( HMC ) Orthopedic Department, and is accompanied on the present visit by Orthotics Technician Mr. Francois Dubousset. Dr. Onimus has been regularly visiting HMC since 1999 as part of HMC 's efforts to provide local patients with top expertise and enable them to avoid the need to travel abroad for specialized care.
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From left, Mr. Francois Dubousset and Dr. Michel Onimus
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Hosting visiting physicians and surgeons such as Dr. Onimus also promotes exchange of expertise and continuing education for medical residents.
Currently Honorary Professor of Pediatric Orthopedic Surgery in Besancon University in France, Dr. Onimus visits HMC three or four times a year to conduct surgery and consult with patients on a fixed appointment basis. He is planning to return in February 2014. "Usually I come in June when we have many children who can then undergo surgery without it interfering with their school time," said Dr. Onimus, who in addition to routine cases of scoliosis in children, also performs surgery on complicated and rare cases.
Scoliosis is a condition in which a person's spine is curved from side to side. It can be congenital, idiopathic (of unknown cause), or caused by conditions such as cerebral palsy and muscular dystrophy. About 1-5 per 1,000 children worldwide have spinal deformities, said Dr. Onimus. Severe scoliosis can be disabling. "When we are treating spinal deformities especially in children, there is no easy surgery. The orthotic treatment, or treatment using braces, for scoliosis is a conservative treatment that is very important because in many cases especially in small children, braces can be sufficient to prevent the spinal curve from progressing, and to avoid the need for surgery," said Dr. Onimus, who added that Mr. Dubousset will provide his expertise to help develop the orthotics services at Hamad General Hospital.
Dr. Onimus sees between 80 and 100 patients in the clinics during each visit to HMC , and operates on several major and complicated cases of children with spinal deformities, according to Dr. Alaa Zakout, Spine Specialist at HMC . "Our collaboration with Dr. Onimus is part of our efforts to develop our department, particularly services for patients with spine problems. We are aiming for more specialization so we can continue to provide the best care possible for our patients."
Dr. Zakout said the department is now starting to do research on spine problems in adults. One of the research studies involves comparing fixation methods to treat spine fractures, and another study analyzes cases where patients went abroad and came back with complications. "People usually go abroad thinking they can get better service. However, many of these cases return with complications or their operations were not done properly, and so there is increased interest in developing spine surgery locally."
About HMC :
Hamad Medical Corporation ( HMC ) is the principal public healthcare provider for the State of Qatar. The Corporation manages eight hospitals along with further specialist clinical, educational and research facilities, and is growing in capacity each year around the diverse needs of the evolving population. HMC 's ambition is to become an academic health system; a world leading center of excellence in clinical care, medical education and research that transforms into significant clinical advancements.
HMC believes in excellence in healthcare, education and research with each supporting the other to provide world-class quality patient care in a safe and healing environment.
As well as four general hospitals situated in the most densely populated areas of Qatar, HMC also manages four specialist hospitals, looking after patients with the most prevalent conditions, including cancer, heart conditions, rehabilitation, and a hospital providing specialist treatment for women. HMC also operates the national Ambulance Service and a home healthcare service.
The Corporation was the first public healthcare system outside the United States to achieve Joint Commission International (JCI) accreditation for all hospitals simultaneously. JCI accreditation is based on quality and safety across all clinical and management functions.
HMC is also the first hospital system in the Middle East to achieve institutional accreditation from the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education - International (ACGME-I), which demonstrates excellence in the way medical graduates are trained through residency, internship and fellowship programs.
www.hamad.qa
For more information, please contact:
Joan Pauline Acevedo at jacevedo@hmc.org.qa
Corporate Communications Department
Hamad Medical Corporation
Source : Zawya , 20th October 2013
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