Doha, June 14 (QNA) - The Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) has affirmed that its commitment to investing in national specialized workforces is the core pillar of advancing health and social services and the quality of care afforded to segments of society.

Addressing a recognition ceremony to award recipients of the Clinical Social Worker certification (Licensed Clinical Social Worker -LCSW track), Assistant Director General for Operations and Clinical Affairs at PHCC, Dr. Samia Ahmed Al Abdullah, said the professional preparation and credentialing of clinical social workers based on current evidence-based professional standards help strengthen the integration of health and social care services.

This approach backs PHCC's efforts to deliver thoroughgoing, patient- and family-centered care, ensure services are aligned with the needs of individuals and families, and foster a more coordinated and integrated care delivery system, Dr. Al Abdullah underscored.

This, she added, is consistent with national health priorities aimed at building a healthcare system that is more efficient, sustainable, and outcome-driven.

The corporation celebrated the conclusion of the Licensed Clinical Social Worker program with the graduation of 15 female social workers after they had successfully completed all academic, training, and practical requirements for the program, which intends to mobilize a qualified national workforce capable of providing specialized clinical social services based on state-of-the-art occupational and scientific standards.

Director of Clinical Operations at PHCC, Dr. Maryam Al Emadi, said the program positions itself as a strategic response to the increasing need for qualified clinical social workers, adding that it was created in collaboration with Qatar University (QU), with the participation of experts and academic in-the-know professionals hailing from varied participating entities.

The objective of this program, Al Emadi noted, is to enable the participants to apply advanced theories and models in fathoming out human behavior and the social environment, as well as to conduct thorough psychosocial assessments and leverage evidence-based therapeutic interventions for addressing complex mental and psychosocial challenges, alongside the reinforcement of ethical principles and cultural competence in professional practice.

For her part, Maryam Al Yaqub, Social Work Services Manager at PHCC, said the program was designed to deepen the participants' advanced clinical skills, particularly in the domains of psychosocial assessments, planning therapeutic programs, and executing specialized occupational interventions.

The program focused on enhancing scientific knowledge pertinent to disorders in mental health, as well as the techniques of handling these disorders through pursuing state-of-the-art practices to help mobilize a qualified workforce capable of efficiently affording integrated services to families, individuals, and groups who encounter formidable psychosocial challenges, Al Yaqub highlighted.

The six-month program featured the participation of multiple pioneering national institutions, including QU, the Department of Healthcare Professions (DHP) at the Ministry of Public Health, Hamad Medical Corporation, Naufar Wellness and Recovery Centre, Ihsan Centre, the Ministry of Social Development and Family, as well as PHCC, represented by the Clinical Operations Department and the Workforce Training and Development Department. (QNA)