Sami Abdel Raouf (Dubai)
The late, God willing, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, may his soul rest in peace, paid special attention to the health sector, because he believed that the human being is the real wealth of this nation, and his health is his crown and his promise to achieve progress, development and prosperity. May God rest his soul, by providing health care, has made a number of the achievements that are being achieved day after day the admiration of followers and international bodies interested in development indicators. areas, and initiatives to encourage the private sector to invest in health. Through the continuous support of the wise leadership, health services have been significantly developed during the past eighteen years, and a good infrastructure for primary health care has been provided. The observer of the developments in the health situation in the country believes that there are many health projects in the country that are considered honorable models in design. And construction and technical equipment in accordance with international standards recognized in this field. For 18 years, the health sector has been the focus of attention and follow-up from the UAE government, starting with providing the best medical, technical and administrative cadres, passing through the construction of various medical facilities, and ending with providing the necessary incentives and advantages for workers in this sector.
Federal health sector budget
The wise leadership’s interest in health and its development was evident in increasing the budget allocations of the Ministry of Health and other health sectors year after year, so that it would be able to meet the necessary needs and play its role in providing health services.
The budget of the federal health sector has witnessed a steady increase, for example, the budget of the Ministry of Health and Community Protection in 2016 was about 3.83 billion dirhams, then it began to increase, until it reached 4.766 billion dirhams in 2022 (at a rate of 8.09% of the total budget for this year).
Health workers received great attention and care in appreciation of their role, and one of the most prominent manifestations of this is the increase in salaries obtained by the federal health sector, with an increase of between 45 and 35% as a transportation allowance for all workers and an increase by 100% as a technical allowance for doctors and technicians, in 2012.
Health care workers at the state level also received support and attention, and the “Corona” pandemic was the largest example that embodied the interest of our wise leadership in providing all the capabilities and capabilities necessary for the first line of defense to be able to provide the care services required for the community and its protection.
This policy bore fruit when this sector was seriously tested with the outbreak of the Corona epidemic. It has proven exceptional efficiency, supported by a large number of government and private hospitals equipped with the latest equipment and medical staff. Long-term spending in the health sector has resulted in the sector’s readiness and coping with any challenges, and it has shown efficiency. High in dealing professionally with the most dangerous Corona epidemic in human history.
The UAE rose to first place globally on the Bloomberg index for the best countries in flexibility in dealing with the “Covid 19” pandemic, two places ahead of the previous classification, and achieved 78.9 points on the general index, and the UAE advanced over countries such as Finland, the United Kingdom, Norway, Spain, Canada and Hong Kong. and the United States.
Building medical cities
The era of the late, God Almighty, Sheikh Khalifa bin Ziyad Al Nahyan, may his soul rest in peace, witnessed the construction of medical cities such as Sheikh Khalifa City in Abu Dhabi, Dubai Medical City and Sharjah City. Most of the UAE hospitals obtained quality certificates or international equivalency, and the Emirates became in Introduction of the world’s countries in this sector.
The number of hospitals has multiplied several times since 1975, from 16 to 169 in 2020.
These hospitals run highly qualified medical staff, who numbered in 2020, about 8,995 in the government sector and 17,136 in the private sector, compared to 792 doctors in 1975.
As for the nursing staff, it reached 56,045 in the government sector in 2020, an increase of 252% compared to 1975.
quantum leap
During the era of the late, God Almighty, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan (may God rest his soul), the health sector made a quantum leap in excellence, professionalism and leadership, which led to the health care system reaching the best ranks in the world.
The UAE is among the few countries around the world that use medical robot technology to perform major operations, such as heart surgeries and general surgeries, such as the Da Vinci robot.
In 2017, the UAE began building the first center for cancer treatment using “proton technology” in the Middle East and the Gulf region. The UAE ranks first globally in the number of “accredited” facilities, and more than 85% of hospitals have international accreditation.
Artificial intelligence
Among the most prominent results achieved are the use of artificial intelligence, surgical robots and telemedicine, as well as being ranked first in the world in the health care coverage index and the existence of national programs for early detection of diseases, in addition to many indicators that ranked it among the best in the world.
In addition, the UAE was considered one of the first countries in the world to use robots in the pharmacy sector, so robots were employed to dispense prescriptions without human intervention.
In addition, what is known as smart rooms were built to provide entertainment services to patients, and to link their medical files with hospitals in order to provide comprehensive and effective care.
Thanks to the guidance and support of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed, may his soul rest in peace, the medical sector has adapted all global technologies to serve citizens and residents, both in terms of therapeutic and diagnostic services, through the use of artificial intelligence, robots, 3D printers and others.
Among the most prominent results achieved by the health sector, the UAE, according to the World Health Organization, topped the Middle East region in 19 indicators and criteria related to dealing with public health risks, as the country achieved the highest rates in assessing the basic capabilities of member states. Over the past 18 years, the health sector has been able to achieve a qualitative leap in accessing health services to all and providing these services in accordance with international standards, which has resulted in the country becoming a destination for medical tourism in the region.
Services for all..quantitative and qualitative
The health sector has given all its attention to using the latest methods in diagnosis, treatment and prevention to keep pace with global developments in these areas, and to meet the needs of society in all its categories and ages, citizens and residents. In the field of therapeutic medicine, health services have witnessed a remarkable development, whether in terms of quantitative or qualitative expansion.
During the past eighteen years, the health sector witnessed a great development in the field of providing health services, both quantitatively and qualitatively, under the rule of the late, God willing, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, may God rest his soul, in order to provide integrated health care services to all residents of the country in Various areas near and far.
The health authorities, through their plans and strategies, took it upon themselves to reach all of its services to everyone, providing integrated health and medical services. society and the individual.
In addition to some advanced centers in providing services, such as the Heart Center at Al Qassimi Hospital, which is considered one of the advanced centers, which includes a distinguished elite of doctors with practical and scientific experience, and the Kidney Center at Fujairah Hospital, which is equipped with the latest equipment and medical supplies with high quality specifications and the latest methods in the dialysis process. globally.
The Thalassemia Center at Fujairah Hospital, which is the first federal center for the treatment of thalassemia patients, and the center provides its services to citizens and residents alike in various Emirates, the Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Hospital for Women and Children, and the Rashid Center for Diabetes and Research, which provides multidisciplinary care for patients.
Building national cadres
A specialized medical training center with international standards has been established to train workers in the medical sector to provide continuous training for work crews, and to make them aware of and keep abreast of all the latest developments in the medical sector, thus enhancing their expertise and raising their efficiency to the best levels.
The health authorities have implemented an ambitious plan to build and empower national cadres and qualify health leaders from the second and third grades, as part of an advanced and ambitious program to qualify leaders and employees to improve services and achieve customer satisfaction with the health sector.
It launched national initiatives to enhance the attractiveness of the nursing profession, set up a program to attract citizens to this specialty, and launched an integrated program to promote awareness of healthy lifestyles in the community, with the aim of promoting disease prevention and setting and applying unified standards for healthy food in all public and private schools.
Healthy Legislative Umbrella
The years of the rule of the late, God Almighty, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, may his soul rest in peace, witnessed a large package of health legislation, as part of the continuous efforts to provide an appropriate legislative umbrella that ensures compliance with the laws regulating in the country and national standards for health facilities. Including the federal law regarding the use of information and communication technology in the health fields, the federal law regarding the regulation of the practice of the human medicine profession, the decision of the Council of Ministers regarding the amendment of some tables attached to the federal law on combating narcotics and psychotropic substances, the decision of the Council of Ministers regarding the executive regulations of a decree-law regarding medical liability. And also the ministerial decision regarding the national immunization program, the ministerial decision regarding the unified electronic platform for prescribing and dispensing narcotic drugs, control and semi-monitoring, the ministerial decision regarding the procedures and controls for accompanying narcotic drugs or monitoring with travelers when entering or leaving the country. The health authorities have provided health legislation that guarantees sound practices in all health sectors in line with the most prestigious health systems in the world, such as the use of information and communication technology in the health fields and the national policy to combat communicable diseases and others, in line with the directives of the rational leadership to move to an advanced stage on the path of future governments and enhance competitiveness The country aims to foresee the future of healthcare and smart services around the clock, according to the vision of the UAE Centennial 2071.
International and Regional Awards
Over the past years, the federal health sector has witnessed several international and regional awards. The Peace Center for Clinical Performance and Excellence based on artificial intelligence technologies won the Gold Award at the annual global conference held by the World Hospital Federation for the category “Excellence in leadership and management in the field of health care.” The project was chosen as the best project out of 121 projects submitted by 92 health organizations and authorities from 34 participating countries, bringing the number of awards won by the PES Center to 11, ranging between global and regional.
The PaCE smart center also won the Cerner Middle East Award in the category of Achievement, Innovation and Customer Experience, and was awarded the Innovate Health Award.
The Customer Journey project at the Ministry of Health and Prevention’s hospitals won, at that time, an award for the best category “Using modern technologies to improve the patient journey in outpatient clinics and internal departments for the project to improve the customer’s journey in hospitals using the automated role system, during the third international patient experience conference, which was organized In collaboration with the American Institute for Health Quality and the Patient Experience Institute.
More than 25 hospitals at the local and regional levels participated in the submission of the award, in addition to the two characters “Sanad and Rahma”, the model for promoting the nursing profession, who received the Ministry of Health and Community Protection Innovation Award.
Achievements in brief
1. The life expectancy of an individual at birth reached 79.7 years, compared to 52.3 years in 1965
2. The infant mortality rate decreased from 17.1 in 1977 to 5.27 in 2018
3. 145 public hospitals, the number of hospitals in 2019 compared to 13 public hospitals in 1977
4. The number of doctors at the beginning of 2019 reached 24,345, compared to 792 in 1977
5. The number of hospital beds at the beginning of 2019 reached 14,601 compared to 2,255 beds in 1977
6. The number of nursing staff at the beginning of 2019 is 55,158 male and female nurses, compared to 2139 male and female nurses, in addition to technicians
7. The number of primary health care centers at the beginning of 2019 reached 149 health care centers compared to 45 health care centers in 1977
8. The percentage of human doctors working in federal health facilities at the beginning of 2019 was 16.2% of the total working doctors, compared to 1.99% of the total working doctors in federal health in 1988
9. Establishment of hospitals specialized in the treatment of oncology diseases within the initiatives of the Office of Presidential Affairs
10. Establishing screening centers to detect genetic diseases for newborns
11. Establishing screening centers for early detection of breast tumors
12. The neonatal mortality rate decreased with the beginning of 2019 to 2.89 per 1,000 live births, compared to 9.5 per 1,000 live births in 1983.
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