As part of its plan to ensure patients and visitors have safe and fast access to parking spots, Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) will introduce a new parking system on its Hamad Bin Khalifa Medical City campus in Doha.
The new policy means that from Thursday, 1 April, patients and visitors will have access to three hours of free parking at all hospitals and facilities within Hamad Bin Khalifa Medical City.
HMC Chief of Healthcare Facilities and Acting Chief of Business Services Hamad Al Khalifa said that as the facilities and services offered by HMC continue to grow, so does the need to ensure safe and convenient parking for patients and visitors.
Qatar’s population has grown significantly in recent years and this is putting pressure on car parking spaces due to the increasing number of patients being treated at HMC.
HMC opened four new hospitals on the Doha campus since 2016 and this has led to an increase in demand for parking spaces due to more services being operated.
Al Khalifa said that the introduction of a paid parking system at HMC will ensure that patients and visitors will have access to adequate and convenient parking when and where they need it.
First three hours free
Research shows that most hospital visits last less than three hours, so the vast majority of patients and visitors will not have to pay for parking as the first three hours are free of charge.
Al Khalifa added that the new fees are set by the Ministry of Finance and are similar to other paid parking facilities in Qatar.
After the first three hours, patients and visitors will be charged QAR15 for one additional hour and then QAR5 per hour thereafter. The maximum charge per day is QAR70. Special exemptions will be given to patients undergoing chemotherapy and dialysis.
When a patient or visitor enters a paid parking zone, they will collect a ticket from the machine at the entrance to the parking facility. When they leave, they must visit one of the conveniently located machines to validate and, where applicable, pay the fee.
One of their main focuses, according to Al Khalifa, is to increase capacity for both public and staff parking areas. He said that since 2016, they have added 35% more capacity to their public parking areas, establishing a clear separation between public and staff parking areas to ensure sufficient parking capacity for patients and visitors.
For updates and more information, visit hamad.qa.
Check out Marhaba’s FREE e-Guides for everything you need to know about Qatar.