Under the patronage of Mr. Yousef Al-Hajji, the chairman of the International Islamic Charitable Organization, the first national workshop on palliative care and hospice services was held in Kuwait over two days (6^th & 7^th, December, 2003). The faculty included consultants from the WHO and from Saudi Arabia. The workshop was attended by interested multidisciplinary candidates from Kuwait and other countries in the region. This workshop coincides with the announcement of a national project to build a multistory center for palliative and rehabilitative care services. The land for the project is already obtained and the construction work is expected to start soon. The building is expected to be ready in two years time. The workshop ended with a list of recommendations and a report that will be submitted to the organizers of the workshop for discussion with health policy makers in Kuwait. Dr. Khalid Al-Saleh, the chairman of the organizing committee emphasized the need to cooperate and link with palliative care programs in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf States to bring palliative care services in the region to the highest quality standards.

Mohammad Al-Shahri, MD
[email protected]