What is the World Health Survey?

The World Health survey (WHS) is a survey designed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and is adopted by the Executive Office of the Ministers of Health in the GCC in order to establish a health database derived from the population of the GCCCs. It has economic, political and health benefits.

What is the benefit of the project?

There are several areas that will benefit from the WHS, namely:

1- Respondent: The benefit is the transfer of the respondent’s opinion about the health system as a recipient of the service in a scientific, realistic way.

Identification of the shortcomings of what he viewed as a recipient of service as well as areas of strength of the health system in the State of Kuwait. This will directly benefit the recipients of the service. Also the respondent will benefit from some medical tests and measurements of free and he/she will obtain a copy of the results of these tests.

2- Ministry of Health (MOH): Provision of realistic, nation-wide,scientifically sound study about the health situation in the State of Kuwait.WHS will provide a database enabling decision makers to take decisions necessary for the development of the health services and to evaluate health programs that have been applied or to be applied and to measure the success of these programs.

3- Research centers in Kuwait: as universities and research centers within and outside the MOH,by providing nation-wide data that may not be available as provided by this survey.

4- Other service ministries: such as researches linking of educational level and the quality of life, as well as research on family budgets and family expenditure. This information is of great importance to various agencies such as the Supreme Council of the Planning, Public Authority for Youth and Sports and other service ministries such as Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor,Ministry of Awqaf and of Communications.

5- The Nation Council: represented through its Committee of Health to benefit from the results of this survey in making suggestions for the development of the health sector.

6- GCC: the represented by its Executive office of Ministers of Health of the States of the Council, by comparing the results of the project among the GCCCs. This will help in designing policies to achieve the health integration at the maximum level of health among the States members of the Council.

7- WHO: through the use of these data in making comparisons among States and to assist the Member States in designing health policy on the basis of documented valid information.

Privacy Policy:

The involved agencies are obliged to maintain the confidentiality of personal data. Personal data collected will not be released to any area and will be only treated as approved with the policy of the State of Kuwait. Kuwait Ministry of Health is vested in keeping these information.

What is the body that will carry out the survey?

The Ministry of Health, under the supervision of the Executive Office of the Health Ministers of Gulf Cooperation Council and the World Health Organization with participation of the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Science (KFAS), will implement this study in order to ensure best quality of the work, accuracy of data and quality of the results.

Who are the donors?

The Ministry of Health, Kuwait is funding the main bulk of the project. The Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Science(KFAS) will also supply a large part of the project. The WHO has earmarked$50000 as symbolic contribution to the project, which costs almost (half a million KD).

What will be with regard to lab investigation and information derived from the participants?

These data will be revised. Any personal data will be removed to ensure the confidentiality of information. A copy of the results of tests will be given to the participant with the possibility of providing treatment to those who are found with a disease discovered by the survey.

Data collected by researchers, after a statistical analysis to infer some of the indicators and evidences, will be used to assess the health situation in the State of Kuwait and to guide the future health plans of the State.

How will we contact you as a participant?

The participant will be contacted personally in two phases. The first will be in the form of an invitation letter, followed by telephone contact by the Contact Group of the Survey, to explain the topics involving the interview and to determine the date of the meeting, which will be by researchers (usually two ladies).

How was the sample selected and why?

Choice was made according to scientific bases and by selecting a random sample representative of the population of Kuwait through the Public Authority for Civil Information in order to ensure the credibility of the selection.

Is participation mandatory?

Of course not, but we hope that the participation of all respondents who were selected for the sample. In this way we serve ourselves and eventually the State of Kuwait, which has long given the many.Also, the population of Kuwait will benefit from this survey directly and indirectly.

How to recognize the researcher?

Prior to the arrival of researcher, date will be first set with the participants. The researcher will carry a special ID card with a photograph, Civil ID and name.

Will researcher be male or female?

For the ordinary families called also “special families”, the team will be composed of two ladies researchers. For the collective families, labour camps,there will be a male researcher to conduct the interview.

Where can participant express his/her comments?

You can send any comments on the e-mail to specially designed for the survey and you can also contact the hot line of the survey. The contact numbers will be available with researchers whenever you request.

What are the necessary preparations before the visit?

There is no preparation needed from the participants except his/her presence at home during the visit in advance,specified by a telephone call. Regarding the medical investigations, he/she must be fasting for 12 hours before taking blood sample in the specified health center.

• Also, be patient with some embarrassing questions (such as those dealing with sexual relationships - smoking - alcohol- property or jewelry .....) with the full right to refuse to answer.

• In the individual questionnaire, it must to note the lengthy of questions, some of which appear to repeated, and the presence of special technology in some of the questions, the so-called"vignettes", which are short stories (each story about two lines)regarding other people with certain health problems, which are requested to the attention of the respondent to answer. These have been prepared by specialists in the WHO in a systematic way to reveal the unconscious level of the respondents. These type of questions requires also patience of respondents.

• It is required from special families to prepare for birth certificates of children under five, or any official document proving that they receive various vaccinations, both within and outside Kuwait.

Is there a clinic in each region?

A number of clinics will be determined in each governorate. An official letter will be given to facilitate the lab testing without the need to stand in a queue. Another letter will be given to the workplace of the participant stating he/she is late because of making blood test in the WHS.

Was this study conducted previously?

Such a study of such size had not been conducted in Kuwait before, so it is a pioneering experiment. However, in other Gulf States, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Oman has finished the phase of data collection of the same survey in 2008, in addition to more than 80 countries in the world.

What are the blood tests required?

Complete blood picture, fasting blood sugar level as well as other levels of blood fats as cholesterol, triglycerides, HDLP, LDLP will be done. No other laboratory testing for infectious diseases (e.g.hepatitis, AIDS or others) will be carried out.

What will be done in the case of detection of any condition of the participants?

In the case of the discovery that the participant is a diabetic, has a rise in the level of blood fats, high blood pressure or anemia that has not diagnosed before, the Ministry will inform him/her of the result and give him/her a report that he can benefit in the future and will be advised to the appropriate place to receive treatment.

For More Details :

http://www.q8whs.com/mainwhs.htm