Participants in the Health of the Paralympic Athlete symposium have commended Aspetar for enabling industry experts a unique opportunity to come together and discuss how to improve the quality of medical care for Paralympic athletes.

Aspetar, the Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, is the official, and exclusive, medical partner of the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships, being held in Doha from 22^nd to 31^st October.

The event drew attendees from the field of Paralympic sports medicine, from Qatar and around the world, to discuss a number of medical policies aimed at the development of medical services for Paralympic athletes.

Dr. Mohamed Ghaith Al-Kuwari, Acting Director General of Aspetar, said that hosting this symposium in conjunction with the 2015 IPC World Championships is important given the profile of the championship within the global sports industry. He also added that the symposium is in line with Aspetar’s sports medicine education strategy, which places a significant focus on discussing the evolving scientific developments and challenges of medical services provided to para-athletes.

Dr. Peter Van de Vliet, Medical and Scientific Director at IPC, highlighted IPC’s 2015-2018 strategy, saying: “The committee’s strategy in the next three year aims to expand its partnerships base, and our collaboration with Aspetar serves as a great example. This kind of work benefits everybody, and ultimately fulfils our vision to develop Paralympic sports and leave a lasting social legacy. We believe that everyone has the right to be involved in sport in a healthy manner.”

On the partnership with Aspetar, Dr. Vliet added: “We have worked with Aspetar from the very beginning to provide medical care to participants in this championship. I am delighted to say that the quality and capabilities that we have seen at Aspetar makes the hospital an ideal partner for the IPC. I would like to thank Aspetar for organising this symposium, which gathered an elite group of experts in Paralympic sports medicine and helped shed light on the IPC’s efforts to strengthen cooperation between all Paralympic stakeholders around the world”.

On the importance of research during championships, Dr. Nick Webborn, Member of the IPC Medical Committee, said: “One of the best ways to develop the medical services provided to athletes is through the research we conduct during championships. The data collected during the championships is uploaded to an online system that has been developed to help those who are involved in providing medical care to Paralympic athletes by regularly updating them with the latest development.”

He added: “Organising such an event with the presence of this group of experts is a great opportunity to share our results from previous championships, and this is exactly what we need. I would like to thank Aspetar for their support and for organising this productive event.”

Regarding thermoregulation in Para-Athletes, Dr. Sebastien Racinais, Head of Research Operations, Athlete Health and Performance Research Centre at Aspetar, said: “Temperature plays an important role in an athletes performance which obviously has an effect on their results, that’s why we have ongoing research and studies on this topic. This symposium is very important as it gives us the opportunity to talk to specialists and participants on our studies, particularly prior to the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, which is expected to see some high temperatures and levels of humidity.”

Aspetar is the first specialised Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital in the region and provides sports medicine and medical treatment service for elite athletes from around the world. Furthermore, as part of the National Sport Medicine Programme, Aspetar collaborates with clubs, federations and the Qatar Olympic Committee, for which it provides medical services to athletes participating in major sport events held in Qatar.

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