Regional Success Stories

After backing the privatization movement, let me begin this post by highlighting one of the region’s most commendable achievements in the public health care sector:

Oman’s hike to the WHO’s 2001 top 10 list of global health care systems.

In the 1970s, Oman’s health care system was struggling with high infant mortality rates, low life expectancies and a poorly-developed vaccination agenda. With the arrival of highly trained and motivated health care leaders who refocused the MOH’s resources into prevention programs, the nation reversed its deficits and now boasts the most efficient health care system in the Middle East, placing Oman at the 8th position on the WHO’s overall best performing systems worldwide. Our neighbors continue today to lead the way in preventative medicine and medical education.

Hats off to our Omani colleagues!

EMIRATES:

1. Dubai Healthcare City

In 2002, Dubai’s current Ruler H.H. General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum’s vision of overcoming major deficits in the region’s health care sector culminated in the creation of the Dubai Healthcare City (DHCC), an ambitious, multibillion dollar project aimed at establishing a regional center of excellence which would attract world-renowned institutions and health care providers.

Shortly thereafter, the project’s managers partnered with Harvard Medical International, a not-for-profit subsidiary of Harvard Medical School, to create three entities within the DHCC:

Harvard Medical School Dubai Center. Established in May 2004, this institution will be the center for the DHCC’s educational activities. It will be responsible for devising postgraduate training programs.

Dubai Harvard Foundation for Medical Research. This institution will promote medical research in the region, collaborate with key international research facilities, provide grants to local researchers and create a platform for an international exchange of scholars.

Center for Healthcare Planning and Quality. The Center will provides the DHCC with a quality assurance oversight and ensures that international standards are achieved and maintained within the complex.

DHCC’s highly anticipated Dubai University Hospital, a 400+ bed tertiary care academic facility, plans to open its doors to the public by 2010 and will employ highly qualified practitioners whose recruitment will be underway shortly. Also in the works is the Middle East’s largest wellness center: the WorldCare Wellness Center, a AED 1 billion project developed in collaboration with the WorldCare Consortium (Duke University Health System, Partners Healthcare and UCLA Healthcare) which plans to focus on prevention of major diseases.

2. Tawam Hospital

This 469-bed tertiary care facility in Al-Ain, Abu Dhabi, partnered with Johns Hopkins Medicine International (JHMI) in this leading U.S. health care network’s first international hospital management agreement. Experts from JHMI have officially taken over Tawam Hospital’s management in March 2006 and will be controlling its administration for the next 10 years. The goals set forth are to help this Emirati institution set up cutting edge clinical services, establish a cost-effective clinical environment and improve patient safety measures. Last month, the hospital announced the opening of UAE’s largest intensive care unit. The 20-bed, state-of-the-art unit utilizes electronic charting and boasts its own satellite laboratory and pharmacy.

3. Sheikh Khalifa Medical City

This conglomerate of health care facilities includes a 700-bed tertiary care facility, a 150-bed psychiatric hospital, and a 100-bed rehabilitation center. Additionally, the SKMC also controls a number of outpatient clinics and primary care facilities in Abu Dhabi. Recently, the Health Authority of Abu Dhabi delegated the management of the SKMC to the prestigious Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Ken Ouriel, the Chairman of the Department of Surgery at Cleveland Clinic, was named CEO of the SKMC.

4. Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi

In collaboration with the Government of Abu Dhabi, the Cleveland Clinic will build a state-of-the-art multi-specialty tertiary care center on the Al-Suwwa Island near the Mina Zayed Port of Abu Dhabi. The hospital will emulate the U.S.-based Cleveland Clinic system and employ a majority of American Board certified physicians. It will complement the services provided by the existing Sheikh Khalifa Medical City.

LEBANON:

1. American University of Beirut Medical Center

This landmark 140-year-old institution is a 420-bed, private, not-for-profit tertiary care facility. It is the primary teaching facility for the AUB Faculty of Medicine. This institution now offers a wide range of residency and fellowship programs for medical graduates as well as a nursing school and a variety of allied health courses. Of note, it is affiliated to the Faculty of Health Sciences which offers the only Master in Public Health program in the region. Also, it is actively recruiting world-renowned leaders in various fields of expertise. As an example of this, Dr. Antoine Amin Kazzi, a U.S. board certified emergency physician and the Past President of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine, has been named Head of Emergency Services to spearhead the development of this deficient specialty.

2. Clemenceau Medical Center

This brand new high-tech medical center opened its doors to the Lebanese people in February 2006. The downtown Beirut hospital is the first in the Nation to be an affiliate of Johns Hopkins Medical International. Despite its 106 beds, it provide a scope of services and operates a full emergency department. It also holds some of the most technologically advanced operating rooms in the world. Among the wide range of programs, CMC offers a dedicated Breast Center, an Executive Health Program as well as other innovative centers.

QATAR:

1. Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar

The prestigious Cornell University of New York has established its first international branch in Doha, Qatar and is the first U.S. medical school to be set up overseas. The freshman class began in the Fall of 2004 and the program replicates the curriculum in place at Weill Cornell Medical College New York. Students will graduate with a Cornell University diploma upon completion of the six-year MD program.

This unique project stemmed from H.H. Sheikha Mozah Nasser Al-Misnad’s, Chairperson of the Qatar Foundation, vision to establish a multi-institutional Education City in the outskirts of Doha and attract elite institutions to its midst.

2. Hamad Medical City

The newly-JCI accredited Hamad Medical Corporation, a quasi-governmental health care organization, has planned one of the world’s largest health care developments: Hamad Medical City. The total capacity of this medical megapole is estimated at 1000 beds and includes three specialty centers of excellence: a pediatric tertiary care facility, a trauma center and a rehabilitation center. A three hundred bed nursing home and dialysis center are also planned. The new offices of the MOH, staff housing, health clubs and recreational facilities will also be located within the City.

3. Sidra Medical and Research Center

 

The Qatar Foundation will begin the construction of what will become the College’s primary teaching hospital, Sidra Medical and Research Center, a 350-bed, all digital, tertiary care facility. The inauguration of this center is planned for 2010. It is supported by an endowment of $8 billion granted by the Foundation.

KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA:

1. King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre (KFSH&RC)

The 844-bed tertiary care facility in Riyadh is well-known to most health care providers and laypeople in the region. This center covers a total area of close to 1 million square meters, includes a slew of research and educational facilities and employs a panoply of international experts in various fields. The Center is fully accredited by JCI. It provides training opportunities in the form of residency and fellowship programs in 62 areas of expertise and publishes the Annals of Saudi Medicine periodical. Since its privatization in 2002, the Center has grown in reputation and size. This self-sustained institution also provides scholarship opportunities independent of the MOH to qualified medical graduates.

2. Saad Specialist Hospital

The 600-bed JCI-accredited hospital located in Al-Khobar in the Eastern Province of KSA opened its doors in 2001. What started off as a modest clinic rapidly became one of the leading health care providers in the region and the Saad Group’s single largest national investment. To date, educational partnerships have been established with Mayo Clinic of Rochester, Minnesota, ranked 2nd best hospital by U.S. News in 2006. A new ultramodern Oncology Center, adding an additional 320 beds, is being completed within the complex.

3. ARAMCO Medical Services Organization

The world’s largest oil company operates the Dhahran Health Center, a JCI-accredited 480+ bed medical center, located in Dhahran City on the Eastern Coast of KSA. Often designated as a “state within a state”, Dhahran has long been a site of recruitment of foreign health care providers, many of which are U.S. board certified, and regularly advertises jobs offering attractive packages. The hospital staff has been carefully selected to meet the needs of demanding expatriate employees and their families. Both Dhahran and neighboring Al-Khobar have attracted highly qualified GCC physicians, including, more recently, many of our own who have flocked there with guarantees of professional development and worthier financial remuneration.

These projects represent some of the most successful achievements in our region’s health care sector. Of course, many more exist or are being planned by the various governments and private corporations, so please stay tuned for updates!