Healthcare facilities will be upgraded

ABU DHABI — The Higher Medical Committee appointed to evaluate the healthcare services in the country will submit its report to the Minister of Health on 13 hospitals in the UAE soon.

By Anjana Sankar

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Published: Thu 30 Jun 2005, 10:53 AM

Last updated: Thu 2 Apr 2015, 3:47 PM

The ministry will plan new strategies for healthcare in the country that is feeling the pressure of a growing population based on the panel’s recommendations.

Dr Abdul Ghaffar M. Al Hawi, Assistant Under-Secretary for Curative Medicine, told Khaleej Times that the committee has completed the auditing of all the hospitals outside Abu Dhabi and will submit its recommendations to the health minister soon.

“With our visit to Dibea Hospital in Fujairah, we have covered all hospitals in the Northern Emirates too. We have held meetings with the directors and head of the departments regarding their purchasing needs for new equipment, appointment of more general practitioners, medical staff etc. to meet the increasing needs of the population,” Dr Abdul Ghaffar said.

The medical committee has been appointed by the Minister of Health to conduct weekly visits to hospitals and primary healthcare centres with an aim to implement quality control and upgrade the facilities in the existing health care system. The purpose of the evaluation process that covers technical, operational and administrative aspects of the functioning of the hospitals is to identify their weakness and strengths in various areas of health care and also to ensure that they follow the ministerial regulations.

According to the ministry sources, shortage of medical staff has been identified as the most pressing need to improve the healthcare system in the country. And as a short-term plan, the ministry is currently reallocating the medical staff to various hospitals that face shortage of qualified staff.

“We have found out that there is a dearth of speciality doctors in some hospitals where as some others that have certain specialisations can actually do without them. So currently there is a need to redistribute the medical staff, especially of different specialisations, to cater to the needs of patients,” explained Dr Abdul Ghaffar.

Starting September, the ministry will undertake a large-scale re-evaluation programme of doctors, technicians and other medical staff in all the 13 hospitals. An expert committee will conduct individual interviews and evaluation tests for the country’s medical staff to ensure that their qualifications and expertise are of international standards.


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