Under the auspices of President Mahmoud Abbas Abu Mazen, the Palestinian Family Medicine Association, funded by the Medical Aid Association for Palestinians, MAP, inaugurated the activities of the second international conference, entitled The Future of Family Medicine in Palestine, with an official Palestinian and international presence, as well as the participation of dozens of representatives of local and academic medical institutions specialized in the field of medicine. The Family Medicine Association held its second international conference in Bethlehem from 21 to 22 November 2019.
The conference was organized in partnership with the Palestinian Family Medicine Association and the Family Medicine Foundation in Palestine, with funding from the Medical Aid Society for Palestinians (MAB), the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), An-Najah National University, Juzoor Association, and the World Health Organization.
A number of international specialists participated in the conference to explain the role of family medicine in strengthening the national health system. In addition, local specialists described their work and future plans for family medicine in Palestine. More than 200 people participated in the conference, including representatives from the Ministry of Health and the Governorate Bethlehem, family medicine physicians, trainees, nurses, pharmacists and other primary health care professionals as the conference included sessions, seminars and workshops on clinical aspects of family medicine, training, research, community engagement, patient participation and international programs.
The conference aims to raise awareness of the importance of family medicine, which is a new approach to primary care and helps ensure that Palestinian families receive continuous, comprehensive and patient-centered lifelong care. The main developments in family medicine that took place in the West Bank during the past decade were also highlighted during the conference. , as well as other developments planned over the next three years.