Key subjects at the conference: reducing pre-term birth, maternal nutrition, gynecologic cancers, IVF, advances in prenatal diagnosis; role of vitamin D in fertility, innovations in medical abortion, menopause and metabolic syndrome.

•  More than 800 experts to converge at the 3-day FIGO Regional Conference of Middle East & Africa
•  Over 40 speakers from world over, including the ministers from MENA region
•  Globally, post-partum hemorrhage accounts for about 35% of all maternal deaths, one of the leading causes of maternal mortality

March 22, 2018 Dubai, UAE:  With focus on the ethics and practices concerning women’s physical, mental and reproductive health; the upcoming FIGO Regional Conference of Middle East & Africa will raise many poignant issues.

Having member societies in 130 countries, FIGO is the only non-profit organization in the world that brings together professional societies of obstetricians and gynecologists on a global basis and is dedicated to the improvement of women’s health and rights while reducing the disparities in healthcare available to women and newborns.

The congress will bring forth the problems faced by the obstetricians and gynecologists in the region.

It will cover cutting edge topics in daily practice, the most recent development and management of the rapidly evolving health care requirements, as well as the crucial challenges concerning low resource countries.

Over 800 attendees are expected to attend the prestigious Congress which will be held from April 11th-13th, 2018 at Intercontinental Hotel, Dubai Festival City, while more than 40 leading professors, fertility specialists, supreme authorities and renowned gynecologists from around the world will address and conduct the congress.

The Keynote speakers at the event include Health Ministers and Prime Ministers from Africa and Egypt. 

Directed at obstetricians, gynecologists, midwives, nurses, general practitioners and other specialists working in the field of women's health, policy and decision makers, patient groups amongst others, the conference is organized by the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO), together with the Emirates Medical Association (EMA), the Federation of Arab Gynecology and Obstetrics Societies (FAGOS) and the African Federation of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (AFOG). 

Commenting on the Congress, Dr C N Purandare, President, FIGO added: “A primary aim behind the Congress is to educate people on the right techniques to reduce the global maternal mortality rate, particularly with reference to post-partum hemorrhage (PPH), which accounts for about 35% of all maternal deaths.

This is more prevalent in under-developed countries, although as per WHO, recent studies have shown an increase in the incidence of PPH in developed countries as well.

We are very fortunate that we have speakers who have conducted in-depth research and devised techniques to counter one of the leading causes of maternal mortality, and I welcome the medical fraternity to this gathering and learn from these researches”.

Dr Amala Nazareth, Specialist Obstetrician and Gynecologist and Secretary General, Emirates Medical Association added: “The idea is to cut commercialism out of the right medical ethics, and to make people realize that if technology is available, one should use it in an ethical manner.

The three-day event will address several issues pertaining to the ethical medical practices including medico-legal aspects, training, healthcare and the right guidelines that should be implemented in all areas of women’s health across all ages.

This is why it’s imperative that medical practitioners in the UAE should attend the congress to understand the difference between what is right and what is commercial”. 

The speakers at the Congress will bring to the platform their in-depth clinical research highlighting the various technologies, guidelines and procedures best suited to provide supreme healthcare to women.

Attendees will have a unique opportunity to pick minds of few of the leaders in the field of fertility health, including names such as Professor C.N. Purandare (India) Dr Edgar Mocanu (Ireland), Dr Neerja Bhatla (India), Professor Mohammad Momtaz (Egypt), Dr Joe Leigh Simpson (USA), Dr Awatif Al Bahar (UAE), Professor René Perrin (Benin) and Dr Faysal El Kak (Lebanon) among others.

Among the keynote speakers, notable mentions includes Hon.Sarah Opendi, Minister of State for Health Uganda; Hon.Margaret Natalie Mensah-Williams, Chairperson of the National Council of Republic of Namibia; Hon. Susan Shabangu, Minister in the Presidency responsible for Women, South Africa; and Hon. Zuliatu Cooper, Deputy Minister of Health and Sanitation, Sierra Leone. 

Topics that will be addressed at the forum include: the current ethical challenges in obstetrics and gynecology; issues related to informed consent; minimal access surgery; IVF; advances in prenatal diagnosis; endocrine disorders in pregnancy; latest developments in contraception; links between maternal health and NCD prevention; maternal nutrition; obstetric care; gynecologic cancers in women , hypertensive disorders in pregnancy amongst many others.

Highlighting the issue of healthy nutrition in pregnant women – one of the key issuesto be discussed at the Congress – Dr Awatif Juma Al Bahar, Reproductive Endocronologist and President, Emirates Medical Association, Obgyn commented: “What a mother eats is what a baby receives.

If a mother eats the wrong kind of food or does not have access to healthy nutrition, the baby suffers and could be born with diseases, or prone to develop disease and low immunity as it grows older.

At the Congress, we will closely observe the negative relationship between malnutrition, obesity and pregnancy, vitamin D deficiency and infertility, management of iron deficiency and offspring health and non-communicable diseases”.

Besides keynote lectures, plenary and parallel sessions and panels, the Congress will also feature hands on training and workshops where attendees can learn the techniques and technologies available in the UAE to make correct diagnosis at the right time, so that the life of the fetus and the mother remain safe.