Countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) –Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen– are facing unparalleled and unprecedented demands for health services. These demands will increase during the next decades due to increase of population as well as due to social, economic, and demographic changes that are taking place in the region. Meeting such demands will pose great challenges for the healthcare systems of GCC countries. Planning, organizing, and financing healthcare systems are complicated tasks that require crucial decisions regarding better healthcare policies. This is further complicated by the fact that GCC countries are witnessing high growth rate of population, sedentary lifestyles, increases in chronic diseases, unstable economy, shortage of qualified manpower, etc. All these demands and challenges will requirethe development of healthcare policies that lead to efficient and effective healthcare delivery to all populations.

The main aim of this workshop is to explore the healthcare policies in GCC countries, challenges facing healthcare systems in the region, and future directions for such systems.Outcomes of this workshop will help decision-makers in the region’s healthcare sectors to better understand and developappropriate healthcare policies.