In Lebanon, as in virtually all other countries around the globe, health has in 2020 been catapulted to the top spot of social concern after the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. To assess the correlation between the pandemic, national governance, the economic and liquidity crises, and the overall state of public health in Lebanon, Executive…
Organic care and true beauty niches
The global cosmetic and personal care market is growing, the upward swing especially boosting companies that produce organic and sustainable products. The specificity of new manufacturing trends and the evolution in marketing funnels, such as the rise of micro social media influencers, is shifting the research-intensive health-related sector towards viability of small enterprises, niche producers,…
Drug money
What a difference in perception a year makes – especially this year of 2020, and especially in all matters concerning health, directly or indirectly. Let’s assume – very reasonably – that you were cleaning your hands a few times a day at about this time in late 2019. Were you to have been engaging in…
Health care infrastructure under pressure
Long seen as the health care centre of the Middle East due to its developed hospital infrastructure and presence of heavily qualified medical personnel, Lebanon may well lose this title soon, due to a series of unfavorable factors, including the economic crisis, the August 4 Beirut port explosion, and the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite the efforts…
Alternative medicine spikes
Alternative medicine has been sitting in the shadow of traditional, Western medicine for some time in Lebanon: alternative medicine. Though it is not controversial, alternative medicine is still seen as a complement to traditional medicine. Long a fixture of the Lebanese traditional scene, with stories, and for some, memories of elder Lebanese concocting herbal remedies…
Acting head of the ICC discusses the state of health insurance in Lebanon
At the end of April, the imposition of rules on guaranteed renewability (GR) in health insurance was introduced to the public under ministerial decree 186, issued by the Ministry of Economy and Trade (MoET). Executive sat down with Nadine Habbal, who heads the MoET’s Insurance Control Commission (ICC), to explore the implications of GR for…
Health entrepreneurship in Lebanon
When it comes to health, Lebanon is one of the leading countries in the Arab world in terms of the quality of healthcare provided and in testing new medical technologies. The country now has the opportunity to lead the way in entrepreneurship via healthcare startups. Executive spoke with entrepreneurs in this field to see what…
Wellness and health in Lebanon: current status and potential for growth
Health and wellness have long been an integral part of Middle Eastern culture. The most common Arabic phrase used for greeting someone—keef el-sohat?—asks after a person’s health. Another common phrase used in Lebanon specifically is yatik el-afyeh (may God grant you wellness), used as a greeting but also for when someone is engaged in physical…
The impact of the refugee crisis on the Lebanese healthcare system
Many column inches have been dedicated to the Syrian conflict and the resultant refugee crisis, the impact of which has been particularly felt in neighboring countries like Lebanon. Less acknowledged but deserving of recognition is the shocking reality that Lebanon’s healthcare system has performed with surprising efficacy in coping with this crisis. The much-maligned and…
The social and economical cost of mental health in Lebanon
In Lebanon, one in four people suffer from mental illness in their lifetime, according to non-profit mental health NGO Embrace. Mental health refers to the condition of a person’s emotional or psychological well-being, in the same way that physical health refers to the condition of their body. Although the public discussion around mental health in…
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