Doha, September 12 (QNA) - The transformations made necessary by the COVID-19 pandemic have driven institutions around the world to find new ways of continuing the work they do - including the World Innovation Summit for Health, Qatar Foundation's global health initiative.

In preparing to host the next edition of the WISH Summit - a gathering of global expertise designed to build a healthier world through collaboration - WISH aims to capitalize on the new opportunities that taking the Nov. 15-19 event entirely online opens up, and making it an unprecedented experience for unprecedented times.

Since the pandemic began, it has ensured dialogue and the exchange of perspectives and experiences about the most pressing global health issues facing global society have continued via virtual platforms. And that approach also applies to the forthcoming flagship event in the World Innovation Summit for Health's (WISH) calendar.

As Sultana Afdhal, CEO of the World Innovation Summit for Health, explains: "We are going fully virtual for WISH 2020 - our original plan was to hold a blended event, with the summit being held in its traditional location at Qatar National Convention Centre, and participants being involved remotely as well.

"Ultimately, our decision to host a fully virtual summit was driven by the global situation we are all encountering, but WISH's global community comprises many healthcare workers and leaders, who are experiencing the most complicated and busiest time of their lives this year, and by being fully virtual we are ensuring that they will still be able to participate from wherever they are in the world."

Although virtual events have become the norm over recent months, the face-to-face networking experience is one of the hallmarks of a 'physical' event, and WISH is making sure it can recreate these in virtual form for its upcoming summit.

"We loved welcoming people to Doha for previous WISH Summits," Afdhal says. "And although they will not be physically coming to Doha this year, we want to make sure the feeling that this is a platform whose roots are in Qatar remains. We have always been proud of the opportunity to showcase Qatari innovation in health, and the work of Qatar Foundation, and we have been careful to ensure that people from around the world will be able to recognize it in virtual form as well.

"With so many international participants, we want to emphasize Qatar's focus on, and achievements in, healthcare innovation in online form, and for participants to have a full perspective on the innovations that are being developed here."

Previously held over two days, the WISH 2020 Summit will have an expanded program spanning five days. As Afdhal explains: "The current situation has given us more flexibility and allowed us to have a bigger program this year.

"Normally, our plans are influenced by the size of the venue and the number of people who will be flying in, but in virtual form this is not a consideration. We also do not want our participants to experience the 'panel fatigue' that can come from watching session after session online, so we are making sure we factor in breaks that give them the chance to truly explore the event and what it has to offer." (QNA)