Monday, January 26, 2015 khaleej times

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khaleej times | aDVeRtisiNG sUPPlemeNt

Significant progreSSin patient care

BY Farhana ChowdhurY

TheUAemedical sec-tor is gainingmomen-tum as a hotspot forhealthcare tourism.Aside from its trans-formation into a

booming hub for qualified staff,sophisticated techniques andstate-of-the-art technology,med-ical institutionsare furtherbackedup by the Joint Commission Inter-national (JCI), an internationallyrecognised certification formedi-cal organisations that sets stan-dards in the field and aims to im-prove quality of patient care.The accreditation assures pa-

The UAE has established itselfas one of the top destinationsin the Middle East formedical treatments withJCI-accredited avenues

tients of the top notch care pro-vided by the hospitals, which inturn is expected to draw in medi-cal tourists from all over theworld. Research firm BusinessMonitor International earlier re-ported thatmedical tourism in theUAe is growing by 15 per cent ev-ery year. The Department of eco-nomic Development’s DubaiTourism and Commerce Market-ing (DTCM) division further not-ed that the city is looking forwardto over 20 million more by 2020—all potential guests for the city’shealthcare services.The bar is constantly being

raised as the UAe looks at oppor-tunities to strengthen its offeringsat affordable costs. The country isnow on par with cost-effectivedestinations such as India andThailand. It is keen to focus itssights on niche medical services.The concept ofmedical tourism

not only helps patients receive thetreatment they require but alsoboosts a country’s medical divi-sion and overall, the economy.

Along these lines, Dubai is ex-pected to build around 22 hospi-tals as part of plans to attract500,000 medical tourists a yearand boost its economy by up toDh2.6 billion by 2020.To keep up with the growing

demand, Dubai healthcare City,a hub of leading medical institu-tions and research facilities,launched its own medical andhealth travel edition in englishand Arabic to help individuals

around the world learn aboutthe services offered in thehealthcare free zone. Thebook is a result of extensiveresearch alongwith a series ofinterviewswith those involvedin the trade, including pa-tients and policy makers.Titled “Patients Beyond

Borders Dubai healthcareCity edition”, it features de-tailed information and servesas a useful tool for those seek-

ing medical treatment in the UAefind an ideal healthcare provider asper his or her needs.Dubai, being an attractive environ-

ment for investors and businessmen,enforces regulations that governmedical professionals as well as anumber of internationally accreditedhospitals and health centres that alladd up to the factors that make thecity an ideal destination.

— farhana@khaleejtimes.com

Theaccreditation

assures patients ofthe top notch careprovided by thehospitals, which in turnis expected to draw inmedical tourists fromall over theworld.

khaleej times Monday, January 26, 2015

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In the service industry, themove towards accreditation isseen as a natural progression of akey commitment to providingbest care practices supported byevidence. especially in the man-aged care sector, accreditation ismore thanmerewindowdressing;it stands for accountability andrecognises the need for continuedevolution of quality services.A not-for-profit organisation

dedicated to improvinghealth carequality, JointCommission Interna-tional (JCI) has been a central fig-ure in driving improvementthroughout the health care systemacross theworld since its inceptionin 1994. As the international divi-sionof JointCommissionResourc-

Medcare, a premium privatehealthcare provider in the UAe, isexpanding its presence across theUAe by developing centres of ex-cellence in advanced specialities.Medcare is part of Aster DMhealthcare, one of the leadinghealthcare conglomerates in theMiddle east and India.Among its offerings is theMed-

care Orthopaedics and Spinehospital, a premiumand state-of-the-art centre of excellence for allorthopaedics and spine related is-sues. With leading medical prac-titioners from around the world,MedcareOrthopaedics and Spinehospital offers a full range of ad-vancedmedical care. the doctorsand the support staff are highlyeducated and well-versed withthe best practices in the medicalfield, having intensive experiencein treating all the cases in ortho-paedics. the hospital consists ofone of the largest and most com-

prehensive associations of privateorthopaedic surgeons in theemir-ate. Dedicated exclusively to-wards orthopaedic care, the su-per-specia l i ty MedcareOrthopaedics and Spine hospitalearned its reputation for beingone of the finestmedical facilitiesof its kind in the region.A multi-speciality Medcare

hospital is also set to open inSharjah. With a capacity for 110beds, the hospital would cater toa wide audience across Sharjahand northern emirates. the hos-pital aims to provide the best inmedical services as one of thelargest of its kind healthcare fa-cilities in Sharjah.Further diversifying its offer-

ings into speciality areas, Med-care is also soon to launch a 75-bed Medcare Mother andChildren Specialised hospital inDubai. the hospital would offercomprehensive mother and childcare with an advanced neonatol-ogy unit, and a super-specialitycentre for post-delivery derma-tology and skin care.Commenting on Medcare’s

commitment to quality care, AlaAtari, CeO of Medcare hospital,said, “We are very focused in ouraim to ensure absolute and com-prehensive care in various areas

of healthcare. Our aim is to offerthe highest quality facilities andtalent to ensure our patients areoffered the best medical care ofinternational standards. We be-lieve there is no compromisewhen it comes to our patients’health. Quality and comfort is anunwritten expectation from us.”

BY Latha Krishnan

LLh hospital, Abu Dhabi, hasbeen offering its superior qualityhealthcare services to Abu Dhabiresidents since 2007. Situated inthe heart of the city, LLh hospi-tal, AbuDhabi has grown steadilyover the years to become the hos-pital of choice, to the communityin Abu Dhabi through the sincerededication of its medical staff inattending closely to each patient’smedical needs with compassion,respect and dignity.“LLhhospital, AbuDhabi was

startedwith the vision to becomethe most admired and trustedhealthcare service provider by of-fering cost-effective yet special-ised and superior healthcare ser-vices to each patientcomplemented by personalisedattention and care; and improv-ing the quality of life for the com-munity in which we live, and

serve the society at large. hap-pily we are nowwell ahead on thepath to achieve that vision. Wehave grown spectacularly in avery short time mainly becauseof our dedicated and high qualityservice,” emphasises Dr LaluChacko,Medical Director of LLhhospital, AbuDhabi.

In 2009, this dedication toquality service enabled LLhhos-pital, Abu Dhabi, to become oneof the fastest recipients of JCI ac-creditation among hospitals inthe Middle east. It is one of thefew hospitals in the UAe that isISO Certified and may probablybe the only hospital to receive theSheikh Khalifa excellence Awardthree times in 2009, 2011 and2014. In the initial year of its op-erations, LLhhospital, AbuDha-bi, received the Australian Coun-cil on healthcare standardscertification making it the firstone to do so in the region.“thesearebutafewofthefeath-

ers in our cap! And they and otheraccolades have come to us due toour fantastic team that does notcompromise on the high qualitycare we give people of more than125 nationalities that visit our fa-cility,” enthusesDrChacko.LLh continues to serve the

community successfully as theflagship hospital of the largegroup company, VPShealthcare,consisting of several hospitalsand pharmacies in the UAe andOman.

Centresofexcellence

Superiorqualityhealthcareservices

Committed to improvingqualityandsafety inhealthcare

Medcareexpandsits reach tooffer specialisedmedical careacross the UAE

LLHHospital,AbuDhabi, hasbecome thehospital of choicethrough the sincerededication of itsmedical team thatattends to patientswith compassion,respect and dignity

To maintain andearn accreditation,organisations musthave an extensiveon-site review bya team of JointCommission healthcare professionals,at least once everythree years

LLhhospital, abu Dhabi was startedwiththe vision to become themost admired

and trusted healthcare service provider byoffering cost-effective yet specialised and superiorhealthcare services to each patient complementedby personalised attention and care; and improvingthe quality of life for the community in whichwe live,and serve the society at large.

—DrLaluChacko

JointCommission international khaleej times | aDVeRtisiNG sUPPlemeNt

We are veryfocused in our

aim to ensure absoluteand comprehensivecare in various areas ofhealthcare. Our aim is tooffer the highest qualityfacilities and talent toensure our patients areoffered the bestmedicalcare of internationalstandards. We believethere is no compromisewhen it comes to ourpatients’ health.

—AlaAtari

es, JCI has work with health careorganisations, ministries ofhealth, and key stakeholder or-ganisations in over 85 countries.According to Dr Ashraf Ismail,

Managing Director, Middle eastOffice of JCI, “Our focus is on im-proving the quality and safety forevery patient care through theprovision of accreditation andcertification services as well asthroughadvisory andeducationalservices aimed at helping organi-sations implement practical andsustainable solutions.”JCI consistently raises the bar

onquality,he says, adding,“Qual-ity is amoving target.What is sat-isfactory today may not be ac-ceptable tomorrow. Our missionis to transform patient safety andimprove quality of health care foreverypatient across theglobe.Weset maximum achievable stan-dards, but these are continuallyevaluated and upgraded as con-tinuous improvement is a criticalcore value of the organisation.”Recognised as a global leader

in providing technical assis-tance, education and qualityevaluation services, JCI providesaccreditation and certificationpreparation assistance to a vari-ety of health care organisationsand programmes. these includehospitals, diagnostic centres,medical transport and ambu-lance services, clinical laborato-ries, organisations providingcare in ambulatory settings, dis-ease or condition-specific careprogrammes, and healthcareproviders across the care con-tinuum including home care,hospice, long-term care and re-habilitation services.“JCI helps both new and expe-

rienced organisations to designand implement the clinical, facil-ity and management structuresto achieve operations improve-ment goals,” saysDr Ismail. “Wecarefully review an organisa-tion’s procedures and practices,identify areas for improvement,and implement processes de-signed to improve the safety andquality of health care. In addi-tion, we also identify risk points,and help the organisation incor-porate practices proven effectivethroughout the world. One as-pect of our role is to help organi-sations help themselves.”to maintain and earn accredi-

tation, organisations must havean extensive on-site review by ateamof Joint Commission healthcare professionals, at least onceevery three years, he explains.“All employees are required toparticipate and be accountableto maintain the level of perfor-mance of the health care organi-sation. the purpose of the reviewis to evaluate the organisation’sperformance in areas that affectthe care they provide. Accredita-tionmay then be awarded basedon how well the organisationsmeet JCI standards.”

Dr Lalu Chacko, Medical Director,LLh hospital, abu Dhabi

UAE • SOUTH AFRICA • NAMIBIA • SWITZERLANDwww.mediclinic.ae

EXPERTISE YOU CAN TRUST.

Mediclinic Middle East’s network of private hospitals and clinics received full JCIaccreditation. This ensures that you receive quality care which measures up to themost stringent international standards.

• Mediclinic City Hospital

• Mediclinic Al Sufouh

• Mediclinic Dubai Mall

• Mediclinic Ibn Battuta

• Mediclinic Beach Road

Thank you to all our staff for their hard work and dedication.

YOUR HEALTHIN SAFE HANDS.

• Mediclinic Welcare Hospital

• Mediclinic Mirdif

• Mediclinic Meadows

• Mediclinic Al Qusais

• Mediclinic Arabian Ranches