GroupNearly 20 years ago when I started my first job in a traditional recruitment office in Stockport in the North West of England, I was greeted by my eight new work colleagues, one office computer, a printer and a time slot to get in front of the screen and check our emails – not that there was ever that many received in a day! On my desk, the rolodex held the names and numbers of our clients, and candidates used to call in at the end of each week to drop off their paper timesheets to be processed for payroll and most picked up their pay cheque from the previous weeks work.

How Times Have Changed

The introduction of so many technological advances in the time period since my first job in recruitment is quite astonishing. Many different service industries have gone through an ultimate paradigm shift in the way in which they operate all thanks to technology.

Twenty years ago, organisations such as Facebook, Uber, Twitter, Airbnb, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn didn’t even exist. The Apple iPhone has only been around for just over 10 years and as it stands today you can now download over 2.2 million apps for a variety of different uses on such devices.

Let’s take the example of banking. If you would have said 20 years ago that only 10 per cent of banking transactions would be done in person at a local branch, and 90 per cent would be completed either on the telephone, online or on your mobile phone, you would have thought the person making the statement was delusional. The actual fact is that a staggering 82 per cent of 18-24-year-olds only ever use their mobile phones to deal with their financial transactions – the future in this industry is pretty clear and self-explanatory. Technology has changed the way we deal with our banking needs fundamentally and forever.

So, Is Healthcare Any Different?

It is absolutely fair to say that over the years technology has had a dramatic effect on the delivery of healthcare, however whilst these changes have been somewhat, in my view, incremental, the biggest fundamental impact on the delivery of care happened in the late 1800’s with the introduction of connected sewage systems to provide clean drinking water. Since that time, we have taken smaller steps in the advancement of healthcare delivery than you might think – until now that is.

The advancement of technology, particularly in the last few years, is already having such a massive and positive impact on the healthcare sector, with buzzwords like Artificial Intelligence, blockchain, robotics and telehealth finally coming into fruition across the sector. So, how does this all come together to change the way healthcare staffing is delivered?

The answer lies in the way in which a healthcare facility in the future needs to be staffed to deliver a new era of healthcare.

Over 50 per cent of any hospital operating budget is spent on staffing. As the way in which the care is delivered evolves, so does the way in which we need to staff the facilities. Consider that during the end-to-end delivery of care to patient, a large percentage of the treatment or diagnosis they receive is conducted by specialists that the patient never actually meets.

If the patient does not meet the healthcare professional then that tells me they don’t actually need to be physically present. The care can, for all intents and purposes, be delivered by the right specialist located practically anywhere in the world. The increase in network connectivity and the fact that more and more of the world is now connected to the Internet via a multitude of different devices, allows us to approach the staffing of healthcare facilities with a new approach.

Not only does this help us to tackle with various global shortages of candidates in certain specialisms, but also allows us to increase the level of care being delivered to the patient. We can ensure the right specialist is delivering the care for a patient that they have spent many years training for.

If we take diagnostics as an example, allowing a healthcare facility to virtually plug into another healthcare facility or facilities, can allow the resource being used to be shared, utilised and optimised amongst one another. This will allow the skill set to be deployed to where the medical need is whilst increasing efficiency for the healthcare system in its entirety.

Other examples of technology impacting the delivery of care, and ultimately how this impacts the staffing of healthcare professionals lies in the use of various tele-consultation platforms now on the market. Allowing doctors and specialists to have tele-consultations either with other healthcare professionals, or directly with patients, allows us to impact a wider geography and shift the current landscape of healthcare staffing.

We are already seeing a plethora of companies in the market where you can talk to a doctor on the phone. Doctor on Demand in the U.S., Babylon in the UK and the recent launch of Health at Hand in the UAE are just some of the innovators and industry leaders in this space. With a conservative estimated 80 per cent of consultations being able to be carried out through the power of video, this can allow a healthcare facility to either reduce the FTE requirements or more importantly increase the number of patients they can look after.Overall, this shift to implement advanced technology into the healthcare sector will have a direct positive impact on the overarching care delivery to a patient. It will provide improved access to specialists, improved quality, improved efficiency, a reduction in FTE and cost with an increased quality of care delivery to patients – and let’s face it, that is what we are all working in the healthcare sector for every day.

If I rewind those 20 years and walk into that same office in Stockport for my first day in recruitment, what would I be faced with today? More interestingly, what will the next 20 years bring to the healthcare staffing industry? As we continue to work relentlessly to deliver outstanding care, I am very much looking forward to finding out.

The AI system is incorporated with the DHA’s Electronic Medical Record (EMR) or Salama system to predict sepsis using Modified Early Warning Scores (Mews) and Laboratory testing to save lives.Sepsis is the body’s overwhelming response to infection, which can lead to tissue damage, organ failure and death.

When a person gets sepsis, the body goes into sepsis or septic shock. Although in many instances, lives are saved by using existing and proven protocols, worldwide, one-third of people who develop sepsis die. Many who do survive are left with life-changing effects, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), chronic pain and fatigue, organ dysfunction etc.

Almost 90 per cent of septic patients present to clinics and hospitals from the community. Hospitals and clinics also have the potential to infect people, especially immunocompromised and geriatric patients.

Sepsis is a medical emergency that requires urgent attention and rapid treatment for survival. According to the Sepsis Alliance report, “Mortality from sepsis increases eight per cent for every hour that treatment is delayed. As many as 80 per cent of sepsis deaths could be prevented with rapid diagnosis and treatment.”

“Given the importance of early intervention in saving lives, we developed this system using international benchmarks to develop protocols in place that promote early intervention and management to save lives,” said Dr. Younis Kazim, CEO of Dubai Healthcare Corporation. “The system uses AI technology that is linked to the DHA’s Electronic Medical Record System. The AI algorithm reviews the progress of the patient and links variables together to identify patterns that indicate a patient may be developing a severe infection. When the nursing staff enters into the EMR the vital signs (pulse, temperature etc.), the system calculates a score. This scoring system is Mews. This is an international evidence-based tool that monitors the vital signs to flag changes if the patient is getting sicker. This score is then linked to recent laboratory results. If this score is 3 or above an automatic warning comes to the nurse and the physician that this patient is at risk of sepsis.”

Dr. Kazim added that the Sepsis Management Workflow was developed by a team comprising both clinical staff from all DHA hospitals and technical staff, who worked together from January 2018 to identify the components of the system required and to build these actions within the Salama EMR.

How will the initiative work?

Once the automatic warning is fired, the nurse contacts the physician urgently. Once the physician reviews the patient, they click on this warning and a set of orders is provided instantly to the physician. These orders include:

– Nursing instructions

–  Laboratory tests

–  Medications

–  Intravenous fluids

This allows the first hour of treatment to start immediately.

Early symptoms of sepsis:

–  Fever and chills

–  Very low/very high body temperature

–  Decreased urination

–  Rapid pulse

–  Rapid breathing

–  Nausea and vomiting

–  Diarrhoea

Benefits of the system:

–  Early identification of patients with suspicion of sepsis as the EMR automatically identifies the patients becoming sicker and notifies both nursing and medical staff to take action

–  Early start of sepsis management

–  Improvement of sepsis outcome due to early identification and treatment

–  Establishment of sepsis registry

According to Dr. Kazim, smart technologies not only help improve patient care but also help improve the overall efficiencies and management systems of healthcare entities. DHA has also been working on the use of AI enabled workflows in Radiology with Agfa HealthCare, since the past two years.

While access to care has improved considerably and is also supported by mandatory health insurance programmes in many countries and city states, there still exists gaps in the health system largely driven by the lack of specialised and highly experienced clinical talent and a lack of trust and poor perception of quality of services for a number of specialties and complex conditions. The next wave of investments in the GCC has to largely focus on bringing in highly specialised clinical talent, and offering multi-disciplinary, coordinated care to address the growing needs of the patient population.

The investment focus thus needs to shift to value-based care models and innovation that can enhance and improve clinical outcomes, and further build trust in the health ecosystem. Among the most important challenges that need to be addressed is the seven to 10 per cent growth in health spending year-on-year over the past four to five years. This increase is unsustainable as it affects and impacts both the GCC governments and businesses in a negative way resulting in growing healthcare budgets and rising premiums for healthcare plans thus increasing the cost of doing business.

The public sector health facilities in the GCC region, however, face a bigger challenge with the growing challenge of attracting and retaining highly qualified and experienced clinical talent, especially as the private sector facilities in most cities in the GCC have seen a faster growth in inpatient and outpatient utilisation. Driven by mandatory health insurance reforms, patients are preferring to visit private sector facilities for non-urgent elective care, particularly when they have insurance coverage. Amongst the several reasons for this include the long waiting times for diagnostics and surgical procedures, poor perception of patient experience (related to admissions, discharge, appointments and billing) in the public sector, and a lack of insurance coverage of services in many pockets, although this is now changing. The slower growth of the public sector is leading to spiralling costs especially as many pockets of the private sector healthcare market continues to be fee for service and utilisation driven. Since there are significant incentives and referral fees being paid to doctors and facilities that is linked to utilisation, it results in overutilisation and challenges with claims approval and settlement with the health insurance companies who are focused on curbing utilisation and optimising costs.

Most GCC health systems have also seen a growing spending on nationals through the overseas treatment programmes, with costs rising disproportionately to the increase in the number of patients. On the other hand, businesses are struggling with the rising costs of health premiums, and many organisations are shifting to lower coverage plans with restricted networks, which constraints and seriously limits the access to health services for the patient population. Health insurance companies and their third-party administrators (TPA’s) across most GCC countries have started sending patients to the home country (more often South Asian countries) for elective procedures and treatment for health conditions ranging from obstetrics to cardiac surgeries and interventions (particularly for low to middle income segments of the insured population) and are covering this through insurance reimbursement at significantly lower costs, which has impacted patient flow and volumes for the private sector facilities addressing the mid and low-income populations.

GCC health systems thus need to drive efforts and investment to support the following:

Technology adoption for care coordination in the health systems: A big positive is the fact that there is evidence of technology adoption driving savings in costs and reducing or curbing utilisation of services through early stage interventions. The focus should be to evaluate and adopt technologies to support a more coordinated care model for patients with chronic conditions (such as Type 1 diabetes, respiratory conditions, etc) where predictive models and analytics can identify risks and trigger early stage interventions. This could bring in nurses to support these services or can be managed to care coordinators thus avoiding frequent and unnecessary hospitalisation and re-admissions when the condition gets worse. Technology investments should be made in devices and systems that can improve health system efficiency and access to care in the public and private sector, as well as improve the quality of care and response time to patient needs.

Integration of hospitals and medical cities with home-based care and telehealth: The focus here is to effectively integrate electronic health records across the health system thus allowing seamless access to patient data and interventions that can enable home-based monitoring, follow ups and telehealth supported services through real time monitoring via smart devices or applications, which will allow physicians and/ or nurse practitioners to intervene where necessary. Evidence of implementing such models across integrated delivery systems in the U.S. as well as in health systems in Europe has shown that this can significantly reduce costs particularly for emergency admissions and visits, and has helped reduce lengths of stay, while also improving clinical outcomes for patients with chronic conditions. Better integration would also enable patients to be transferred to nursing homes or long-term care centres, which are largely nurse-managed and have a lower cost base, and would unlock capacity that is taken up at acute hospitals for long stay patients. This would also support a growing convergence for health services delivered between large hospital systems and smaller clinics and pharmacy clinic models that can support chronic disease management programmes and early interventions with greater convenience and lower costs.

Specialised centres for tertiary services: GCC health systems need to target and facilitate investments in smaller, more convenient and efficiently set up Centres of Excellence to treat a number of advanced specialties and sub-specialties (e.g. Oncology, Cardiology, Neurology, Orthopaedics & Rheumatology among others) aimed at addressing the needs for screening and early detection of chronic conditions, appropriate diagnosis and treatment from outpatient to inpatient services including extended rehabilitation and/or physical therapy. These centres need to focus on and support clinical education programmes, research and affiliation with best in class international providers to bring in effective clinical pathways and enable the use of the most advanced technologies to treat patients thus focusing on improved clinical outcomes and patient trust, and reduced lengths of stay and readmissions.

Encourage the set up of urgent care clinics: It is well known and widely reported that 60-70 per cent of patient visits to ER in GCC hospitals are for services that are non-urgent in nature and can be treated in outpatient centres. Efforts need to be made to drive and encourage the set up of smaller urgent care clinics across communities that work round the clock, led by GPs and are mostly staffed with physician assistants and nurse practitioners, to address the challenge of rising costs, and to treat these minor conditions and ailments in a less expensive setting. Many such models have proven to be cost-effective, thus offering quicker access to patients with no compromise in quality of care, given that the clinical staff is well trained and has the experience of seeing a constant flow of patients having similar conditions. Telehealth applications and services could also collaborate with urgent care clinics and ambulatory care centres to triage patients, reduce waiting times and improve patient access and convenience. Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the UAE are witnessing the growth of such models and the rest of GCC can follow suit and support these cost-effective models.

While innovative and disruptive models need proactive investment facilitation support by regulators, it is imperative for the regulators to review policies and legislations that could enable the licensing of these facilities and applications, and encourage their roll out and set up to improve access to patient services. The success of innovative models listed above need close collaboration between regulators and insurers to effectively reimburse and support patient flow to such models that could address the rise in cost of health services, and improve patient access, experience and clinical outcomes for the sustainable future.

With the aim of revolutionising the way healthcare is delivered in Dubai while at the same time, focusing on patient-centric care, the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) is working with private companies from across the world to implement cutting-edge technologies to provide patients with the very best standards of care. This initiative is part of the Dubai Future Foundation’s Dubai Future Accelerators (DFA) programme, which recognises that technology has the power to improve efficiencies of the overall health sector, improve healthcare management and bring down the cost of care.

Launched in 2016 by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and the Chairman of Dubai Future Foundation, DFA serves as a platform to work on transformative solutions using latest digital technologies in several fields including healthcare.  

“DHA is keen on exploring the use of technology in healthcare as technology has the power to transform lives and in the healthcare space, it is even more impactful as it directly improves patient care,” said Dr. Mohammed Redha, Director of Project Management Office, Informatics and Smart Health at DHA.

Constructive Partnerships

As part of its participation in the fifth Dubai Future Accelerators cycle, HE Humaid Al Qutami, Director General of the DHA met with the four companies that DHA is working with to brainstorm and discuss ways to implement these innovative solutions in the health sector in Dubai.

According to Al Qutami, “The Dubai Future Accelerators programme is a platform that provides us with an opportunity to explore the use of cutting-edge technology in the healthcare space. At the end of the day, patient-outcomes and happiness is our core priority, and technology has the potential to transform healthcare for the better.”

The fifth cohort of Dubai Future Accelerators consisted of nine weeks of joint work between the government entity and four selected accelerators. The programme saw the companies presenting proofs of concepts and pilot projects at DHA hospitals to see how this technology can be incorporated in Dubai.

Six Body Vitals on a Single Smart Device

Scanbo, an AI-based healthcare start-up, is one of the companies working with the DHA’s Dubai Future Accelerators office. The company has invented a portable and connected device that can capture multiple vitals from human body and transfer data to a mobile app using bluetooth.

According to Ashissh Raichura, Founder & CEO of Scanbo, “The device is very easy to use. The patient simply needs to place his fingers on the device and in less than two minutes, the device provides accurate details of six body vitals: blood pressure, temperature, heart rate, ECG, blood sugar and oxygen levels. The data will be stored on a mobile app and also maintains the history. We also have future versions planned, which will have 18 vitals in a compact and portable device.”

“The idea,” says Rohini Kaul, Co-founder and Chief Business Officer of Scanbo, “is to empower the patient to self-check regularly. This app can also be accessed by doctors; so it allows both the patient and the doctor to foresee any minute deviation for early intervention and further investigation.”

Remote Doctors for Specialised Surgeries

Another technology that was assessed is Proximie, a cloud-based augmented reality platform, which allows doctors to virtually transport themselves into any operating room or clinic to collaborate, guide and support surgeons and healthcare professionals.

The technology is being used in several countries, including across South America, for complicated surgeries for children with cleft lips. It is also being used at different hospitals around the world, as well as medical device manufacturing companies, and teaching hospitals and institutions.

Tariq El-Titi, Commercial Director of Proximie Gulf, explained, “The technology allows doctors to virtually scrub in, without being in the operating theatre. The technology literally augments the transmission of the real physical world on screen with additional, digitally generated content. It allows remote hands-on virtual assistance and provides specialised care and input at affordable costs.”

Pre and Post-Natal screening

P4 Medical Laboratory (P4ML), Ireland’s first ever precision medicine company, has designed a non-invasive prenatal test (NIPT), which is a simple blood test that is CE-IVD marked. PJ Moloney, Managing Director of P4ML, explains that the test is called Eolas Plus and helps detect specific chromosomal disorders as early as 10 weeks to provide valuable information in pregnancy management. “We have developed very specific IP to also screen for biomarkers for foetal growth restrictions (FGR) in tandem wiith our NIPT test,” he added.

“Preeclampsia and FGR are disorders that cause short-term complications for the infant and have been associated with a range of diseases in adult life, such as ischemic heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and long-term neurodevelopmental disorders,” says Moloney. “Moreover, these complications have profound effects on maternal morbidity and mortality. Preeclampsia is one of the leading causes of maternal death globally, and preeclampsia and FGR are markers for the mother’s later risk of cardiovascular disease. Both preeclampsia and FGR are associated with abnormal placental function and metabolism. We pick up biomarkers for foetal growth disorder or pre-eclampsia so that the clinician can then advise and put the patient on a dose of aspirin to help bring the mum and baby to full term.”

Normally, in cases of pre-eclampsia the only solution is a C-section at week 28 or at 32 and the baby is born preterm and needs admission in an INCU. “However, early detection at 10 weeks allows the doctor to put the patient on aspirin so that they can bring the mum and baby to term at 38 to 40 weeks,” he added. 

Robotic Assistant for Surgeries

Amer Khayel from Amico explained how his company supplies a robotic assistant known as ROSA with a robotic arm for minimally invasive spine surgeries.

“ROSA automatically positions the guide according to the planned screw trajectory and allows precise adjustment of the guide’s position. The robot arm follows the patients’ movements in real time, a feature that mimics real life and responds to one of the common unmet clinical needs,” he said.

Asclepius was the God of Medicine, according to ancient Greek Mythology; and his ‘rod of Asclepius’, the snake entwined staff, is still a widely recognised symbol of medicine. For centuries, Asclepius was (and is) considered as perhaps the greatest healer. But surprisingly, ‘medicine’ is defined a little differently: according to the Oxford dictionary, it is ‘the science and practice of diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease (often excluding surgery)’. Yet, in healthcare today, we focus on providing reactive care – treating sick patients, instead of proactive care – helping prevention of diseases as well, in line with the complete definition of medicine. We are now therefore facing challenges with chronic conditions, for example, and don’t really have a Panacea (incidentally a daughter of Asclepius), at least a quick one for these problems.

That healthcare is undergoing transformation is a given fact. Dealing with expensive, life-long chronic conditions and an ageing population on the one hand, and with several technology innovations touted to address these challenges on the other, the model of delivering care is being upended. Moving towards a proactive or preventive care approach requires data-driven, clinically meaningful insights to be available for a physician to make prognostic, predictive decisions early-on. Luckily, with technology advances the healthcare industry is undergoing a digital transformation towards a much anticipated decentralisation of the care delivery models to bend the cost curve for lifestyle-driven chronic health conditions.

Today, digitisation of drugs (therapies), devices, services, and business models is democratising current healthcare systems, unlocking new values by displacing high-cost gatekeepers and previously inaccessible segments. This has made the digital transformation theme a core strategic priority for all healthcare industry participants, as they strive to justify the value in the much-anticipated data-driven, outcome-based reimbursement regime. The adoption of these technologies is being incorporated even in national strategies for healthcare, such as Saudi Arabia’s National Transformation Plan 2020, for example.

But implementing such advances in healthcare leads to another set of challenges altogether – privacy and cybersecurity of patient data for one, but even the ability to sift through and make sense of such large volumes of data (a long view for a patient, and at a population level). As we continue tracking the several technologies in healthcare at Frost & Sullivan, we continue to see emerging innovations in care delivery, with novel business models and some growth opportunities along the way. Here, we present our top three picks of transformative technologies in healthcare, and where we think they are heading.

Internet of Medical Things – Care Delivery Innovation Promoting Anytime, Anywhere Care

The Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) or the Healthcare Internet of Things (IoT) is a vast umbrella term with many applications of the technology. IoMT is well-suited to meet the needs of today’s transforming healthcare industry, supporting the transition from disjointed care to co-ordinated care and reactive to proactive care delivery approaches, for example. Capitalising on this trend with the right applications, for the right customers with the right partners and relevant business models is crucial for healthcare stakeholders to survive the fierce competition, which is supported by start-ups and tech giants alike. There are four broad application segments for IoMT that support the development of the ‘anytime, anywhere care’ approach of healthcare delivery, allowing for insights to be collected and shared with medical care practitioners, and allowing them to intervene when necessary in a proactive approach to lead to better patient outcomes:


On-Body (aka Wearables): After a wave of consumer-grade wearables tracking fitness, medical-grade wearables and ‘smart’ implants that can communicate parameters and be used by patients are now coming to the market. Even makers of consumer grade wearables are developing medical-grade features for their products; the most recent example being Apple Series 4 Watch for ECG monitoring that secured US Food & Drug Administration approval.


In-Home (extending to Smart Homes): Similar to the wearables, other connected and smart diagnostic medical devices that support telehealth services are also used at home by patients – such as TytoCare at-home physical examination device for ears, throat, heart, lungs, abdomen, skin, heart rate and temperature. Another example is of Inui Health that provides in-home urine testing using a smartphone app for colorimetric analysis, for testing kidney and general health, and urinary tract infections. All such devices and sensors, in combination with smart home systems can also provide better monitoring and care for residents, especially the ageing-in-place community.


In-Hospital (extending to Smart Hospitals): Clinicians in primary care are beginning to use smart, digitised clinical devices like digital stethoscopes. Hospitals are employing RFID, beacon or indoor GPS technologies for wayfinding within the their premises and smart hospital rooms that allow patients to communicate with care teams virtually, from their bedside - all in a bid to improve patient experience. IoMT technologies enable hospitals by providing data that can be processed for providing a valuable service or insight, which was not possible or available earlier – the very definition of smart hospitals. A great example is the use of advanced technologies at the Johns Hopkins Hospital’s Capacity Command Centre, built in partnership with GE Healthcare Partners.


In-Community (extending to Smart Cities): Outside of homes and hospitals, smart cars can track vitals of passengers during transit, and any exigencies can be supported by drones for emergency response. From a public health perspective, the MIT Underworlds Project explores sewers as a source of information to track spread of diseases using sensors, but smart city projects are probably not geared for healthcare at the moment, we envision these to become a reality in the 10-20-year timeframe.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) – Collaboration of Man-machine Intelligence to Redefine Healthcare Adoption of AI in the global healthcare market is expected to accelerate due to the need to automate the process of evidence-based business decision making and increasing availability of both platform grade and modular machine learning or deep learning solutions. With 55 per cent of the EMEA region, and 66 per cent respondents in Saudi Arabia and 62 per cent in UAE willing to have AI technology to help treat them, the potential for the technology in this region is high. We believe that AI solutions may never replace doctors but will definitely allow them to be more efficient and accurate. AI’s ability to help physicians identify disease patterns that were historically untraceable, will break new grounds in healthcare research and delivery. On the other hand, the surge in patient generated data can be handled and interpreted by AI platforms and can have multiple utilities for diverse set of healthcare stakeholders. The use cases for AI are plenty, but we will restrict them to the following two:


Medical Imaging: Apart from the most famous, and most advanced image analysis applications (detecting a tumour in a CT scan for example), there are several other applications in the medical imaging workflow for AI. Along all of the steps of the workflow, from ordering of imaging studies by a physician, to acquisition of the images by the imaging equipment, to assigning the images for review by a radiologist, to viewing, analysing, interpreting, deciding next steps and reporting – all can benefit from AI in different formats. And in almost each case, we are seeing some developments already. Even medical imaging equipment is becoming ‘smart’, and using AI to position the patient correctly while imaging to remove operator variability for example, saving time and also reducing patient radiation exposure. There also are pre-clinical applications in research using medical imaging such as imaging biomarker validation for radiomics, for example.


Patient-Facing Apps and Devices: Consumer or patient facing medical devices and mHealth apps are also equipped with AI to drive intuitive patient monitoring, patient safety management and self-care. Patient engagement is another important area where AI has multiple applications. Payers and providers are actively trying to automate the process of identifying patients who need preventive screening and cross-continuum follow-up support. The most recent example from the Middle East is the agreement between the Dubai Health Authority and Babylon Health, which provides medical consultation through an AI-based chatbot and telehealth support as well.

Blockchain – The New Trust Code for Digital Health Workflows

As the healthcare industry struggles to find the trade-off between the risk and reward of going digital, potential application of blockchain technology provides a timely solution to mitigate some of its pressing needs. Despite the enormous potential of blockchain in disrupting healthcare digital workflows, it may not be the panacea for all healthcare industry challenges. It therefore is critical for healthcare industry’s senior executives to first understand and decode the hype cycle of blockchain technology, and its realistic healthcare applications. By doing so, we believe that among several hundred use cases, the blockchain-based healthcare use cases mentioned below demonstrate more convincing opportunities, albeit at varying degrees of adoption across countries and health systems.


Health Data Exchange and Interoperability: It is important to understand that true interoperability transcends beyond the technical facets of information exchange - it is the ability of two or more systems or entities to trust each other and then use the information with shared accountability. As a result, despite increasing adoption of EMR/EHR systems and digital health solutions, lack of trusted digital workflows has resulted in disparate HIT systems and centralised health data management models. Based on industry estimates, current centralised IT systems for health data exchange cost about 150,000 lives and $18.6 billion every year globally to health systems. The unique properties of blockchain technology provide an immutable and trusted workflow with a “single source of truth” to warrant integrity around health data exchange, minimise cybersecurity threats, and augment health data governance applications. The recent collaboration between Guardtime, the data-centric security company, and the Estonian eHealth Foundation to secure the health records of one million Estonian citizens using its proprietary Keyless Signature Infrastructure® (KSI®) is a classic example of blockchain technology.


Healthcare Frauds Waste and Abuse: An estimated $455 billion in global healthcare spending is lost every year due to fraud, waste, and abuse. As countries move towards universal health coverage via health insurance, health insurance fraud and claims leakages continue to concern insurers globally including those in the Middle East. Industry estimates suggest that about 10 per cent of insurance claims in Middle East are fraudulent leading to waste and increasing cases of medical claim. For example, Saudi Arabia insurance companies are rejecting about 25 per cent of medical claims from hospitals and other service providers on the grounds of fraud. Blockchain-based systems can provide realistic solutions for minimising these medical billing related frauds. By automating the majority of claim adjudication and payment processing activities, blockchain systems could help to eliminate the need for intermediaries and reduce administrative costs and time for providers and payers. Recently announced limited availability of Change Health’s medical billing management blockchain solution called the “Intelligent Healthcare Network”, is a great example, which at its current capacity is processing 550 transactions per second. 


Precision Medicine and Population Health Research: The precision medicine concept promises a paradigm shift in the care delivery arena. It aims to integrate personalised health data from direct (e.g., omics/health vitals) and indirect (e.g., environmental/exogenous) sources, targeting individuals’ health and well-being. However, with personalised health data being the “Holy Grail” for precision medicine practice, it is not unique to some of the prevailing challenges involving health data interoperability, privacy, ownership, and security. Additionally, current legal and ethical frameworks for health data exchange were built with a very different generation of medical and research practices in mind and raise some serious challenges for seamless exchange of personalised data to population-based genomic studies and research commons. Furthermore, blockchain technology, with its ubiquitous security infrastructure for seamless health data exchange, promises to drive unprecedented collaboration between participants and researchers around innovation in medical research in fields such as precision medicine and population health management. Furthermore, the trusted digital workflow of blockchain technology will promote Research Commons and remunerative models for data sharing and crowdsourcing-based research models. For example, emerging start-ups such as Encrypgen LLC, BitMED are working on blockchain-based patient-centric platform that would allow individuals and patients to securely grant access to their personal health information to researchers and pharma clinical trials sponsors and get rewards or even free telehealth consultation.

Figure 1

Summary

Emerging technologies outside and within healthcare are converging (see figure 1), along with the three technologies of AI, IoMT and Blockchain, that together are creating a significant impact on the healthcare industry in general. Needless to say, the state of healthcare by 2025 will be very different from the picture today, and the focus then will be on the patient to get better outcomes at lower costs and with an improved patient experience.

References available on request.

Say goodbye to paper for good in healthcare as digital transformation is currently revolutionising outdated patient care. Today, both providers and patients require access to their data and devices at all times and clinical mobility and cloud solutions are making this possible. Not only that, it is also driving efficiencies across all areas right from improved care to streamlined clinical workflows.

Clinical mobility has started to create a profound impact not just on IT executives but also on nurses, doctors, and patients. For example, the use of handheld computers and mobile printers by doctors and nurses at the bedside or providing a tablet to patients to allow them access to their reports and care programmes, along with social media apps, is not a scene from Netflix’s sci-fi show Black Mirror anymore. It has become today’s reality and leads to an overall better patient experience.

Around the world, clinical mobility is transforming care at healthcare facilities by digitally capturing data and transmitting it in real time to clinical staff, thereby eliminating manual error-prone procedures and delivering critical time-savings. As an early adopter of innovation across the board, Dubai is also witnessing this trend in healthcare. For instance, the newly opened Mediclinic Parkview Hospital in Umm Suqeim, Al Barsha South 3, recently entered into a partnership with Zebra Technologies in order to digitise its processes and enhance patient safety and care.

Digital Hospital Model

A greenfield construction, the Mediclinic Parkview Hospital, Mediclinic Middle East’s seventh general hospital in the UAE, opened in September 2018. As part of the tie-up with Zebra, the hospital is utilising the tech company’s healthcare solutions that will be used for patient identification, increased visibility of medication administration and clinical mobility with mobile access to medical data. The facility’s ‘digital hospital model’ sees it using Zebra’s printers, barcode scanners, wristbands and tablets that are integrated with the Mediclinic Group’s new Health Information System (HIS).

Barry Bedford, Hospital Director, Mediclinic Parkview Hospital, told Arab Health Magazine: “Healthcare is a combination of service providers, doctors, and pharmaceutical companies. It is an amalgamation of a lot of people and just in this hospital, we have more than 35 different specialities and highly qualified people from 40 different nationalities. Everyone comes from different backgrounds and we want to make sure that technology is somehow aligning them. Safety is important to us that is why we have adopted systems such as Electronic Health Records (EHR) and have top-class doctors.

“Mediclinic Parkview is a flagship hospital in the southern part of Dubai. There are 800,000 people around this hospital. After just one month of opening, we see almost 260 patients almost every day. This includes around 10 in-patients, which for us is critical and we can achieve that only thanks to the technology we employ. We don’t want technology only in the hospital, we want it in our ambulances and in pre- and post-operative care.”

Zebra’s healthcare solutions for Mediclinic identify and track patients from admission to the bedside, medical laboratory, and pharmacy, ensuring visibility of key data at the point-of-care, to help enhance the quality of patient care and safety, and overall hospital efficiency. Furthermore, these mobility solutions support clinicians across the hospital including doctors on their daily rounds to assess patients with access to medical records such as patient medical history, treatment, and test results. These solutions include tablets, barcode scanners, especially when it comes to patient identification and access to medical records and ensure that the right treatment or medication is available to the right patients. It also includes specialised type of printers and scanners that can be sanitised.

Bedford highlighted that one of the first international patient safety goals is the proper identification of the patient. Also, one of the biggest errors in the world is medication errors or near miss of medication errors.“Can you imagine receiving someone else’s blood results! This is where technology plays a crucial role in filtering these aspects for the doctor. But in the old days, it used to be what’s your name, etc.? But now you scan, and as soon as that’s done it meets five criteria’s immediately. For me it’s so refreshing as between the different languages and cultures around us, there can be a gap. And thanks to technology, with one scan we are able to bridge the gap and minimise and even eliminate all these human factors that could cause errors. From a patient safety point of view, it makes it 10 times easier for us to manage,” he explained.

Raziel Peña, ICT Operations Manager, Mediclinic, added: “This integration allows for standardisation of products across the board. One of the key things we have received from Zebra is healthcare grade equipment, which means the hospital staff can safely clean the whole thing and make sure everything is up to standard when it comes to infection control, without degrading the quality of the equipment. Furthermore, it makes it easier for the staff to access information. That translates to patient safety and they can comfortably concentrate on actual patient care.”

While Thamer Nouri, Business Development Manager, Zebra Technologies explained that the company’s goal is to not to talk only about products and hardware, but put emphasis on discussing patient safety, medication administration, mobility, patient quality of care, and how technology can be used to improve patient care. He highlighted that staff from different levels of Mediclinic, such as the end-users, IT and chief nursing officers were involved in evaluating the technology that would be the right fit for the organisation.He said: “Our technology acts as the “digital voice” for a patient and links them to the HIS to ensure that it enhances clinical mobility and intelligence.”

Integrated Care

According to Bedford, an integrated hospital is a safe hospital. He expressed that EHR integration is not only clinical, it also is about the financials and the revenue. When you compare a paper-based system to an integrated one, he stressed, the integrated system also includes people, audits, recordings, and lessons learned, and everything becomes easier to extract. However, a reliance on paper could lead to errors, which might not be easy to pick up.

He said: “You often have a lot of standalone systems, but technology is able to interface and integrate it all from the end-user’s perspective. This includes everything right from barcode systems, tablets, and could even include integration between ventilators. Plus, it’s easy to use these systems. For example, a nurse takes a scanner, does the scan and puts it down, it’s as simple as that. It’s faster, more user-friendly and accurate, and gives more credibility from a patient’s point of view.

“When someone comes into the hospital, what is the safest way to treat them? You don’t want to bring a patient to the hospital and keep them around equipment that is not vetted by international standards. We follow all the required regulations to ensure that technology is helping us to be able to provide that service. Tomorrow if you want to start a cancer database, by integrating this technology with our lab results you will be able to easily identify when cancer has been diagnosed. Cancer often gets diagnosed not in the hospital but in primary care facilities. That’s where you need to get the integration right.”

Zebra’s Future of Healthcare: 2022 Hospital Vision Study identified the rising adoption of clinical mobility – the use of mobile devices such as handheld mobile computers, tablets, cordless barcode scanners, and mobile printers – in hospitals around the world. Seventy-two percent of surveyed decision-makers say that mobile devices are improving the quality of patient care, giving clinicians actionable intelligence at the bedside with the effect of increasing time with patients and reducing errors.

The numerous benefits of clinical mobility are fuelling an increase in adoption of mobile technologies at every level of care. According to survey respondents, nearly all hospitals estimate that mobile devices will be used at the bedside by nurses (97 per cent) and physicians (98 per cent) by 2022, but also increasingly by other members of the care team such as pharmacists, lab technicians, radiologists, and patient transport professionals. The study also highlighted how patients perceive the rise of clinical mobility with nearly eight-in-ten survey respondents feeling positive about mobile tools being used to improve their care.

Focus on Quality

Peña shared that involving the doctors and nurses and finding out what they think about the product, was an important step, as it helped them understand how the staff could do their jobs easily.

“For example, in the pharmacy and the lab, we have heavy-duty printers, as they have a lot of stuff to label. In terms of printing, everything is networked in the hospital. That includes printing solutions in terms of labelling and wristbands and ensuring that everything goes seamlessly via the EHR solution network and also allows to share the resource. Before we could have only one printer per workstation but now that allows us to save a little bit in terms of space and cost and now, for instance, the nurses are sharing these printers, as they are customisable. A happy staff equals to happier and healthier patients,” he described.

According to Nouri, most hospitals don’t have a high level of mobility, or probably no mobility, but he expressed that he can see a change in this trend in both the UAE’s public and private sector.

“What we are seeing among our clients in terms of applications is that when it comes to mobility or mobile computing, they look at medicine administration, or bedside sample collection and identification using a mobile printer or a mobile Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), to identify these samples and reduce risk of misidentification,” he explained. “However, there is much more that can be done around mobility. For example, we can have connected biomedical devices, where you receive patient alerts about blood pressure, it could be connected to a ventilator, could be a heart monitor, so the vital signs, are connected to the HIS and at the end of the day the nurse in charge would receive the notification about the patient. Also, these devices will be able to connect with voice, so there will be a voice solution for communication, different types of alerts, secure messaging, and that in a way encapsulates a connected hospital.”

But according to Peña, the intelligence of these machines comes down to how much data you put in and how it can be used for different purposes. Having everything connected, right from tablets to scanners to biomedical devices, is making it easier to have the information centrally and easily accessible. These systems offer analytics that can be used for different purposes such as management decisions, or to get highlights of the records that will help doctors identify some cases later and gain knowledge. In the future, that is probably the kind of intelligence the government will be looking at, for example, to find out what the population is complaining about or getting sick of and later launch prevention programmes.

He concluded: “Innovation is very important, and we are investing in the necessary technology to make sure that the patient care is improved. I am sure that soon enough there will be a mandate from the government in terms of collaboration with other healthcare providers and the government itself, and I like to think we are ready.”

Digital Transformation

Zebra is working with the Dubai Health Authority (DHA), to provide new specialised healthcare technology solutions to enable the digital transformation of the emirate’s healthcare sector. As part of the DHA’s Salama unified electronic medical record (EMR) system, the collaboration with Zebra provides enhanced patient identification and mobile access to medical data, from patient admission to bedside to discharge.

The Salama system was launched in April 2017 to provide patients and doctors with access to medical records through an electronic patient portal. In this regard, Zebra manages the deployment of a broad range of solutions including healthcare purposed mobile computers, scanner, printers as well as wristbands. These products have been specifically designed to meet the unique demands of the healthcare environment, in conjunction with DHA’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and clinical team requirements. The solutions have been deployed across all of DHA’s four hospitals, specialty centres and 13 primary healthcare centres across Dubai.

What are some of the key achievements of the DHA over the past few years?
I think the roll out and uptake of the mandatory health insurance scheme in Dubai is certainly one of our most important achievements in the last few years. This is a major milestone in ensuring access to healthcare. Today over 99 per cent of the population has access to essential health services. In addition, plans are underway to extend the health insurance coverage to include visitors to Dubai. The mandatory insurance coverage has been a direct source of patient happiness and we will continue to enhance the system.

We have also achieved a big leap in the number of health facilities that are internationally accredited. Currently, 96 per cent of hospitals in Dubai have completed their international accreditation, which is a significant jump from 80 per cent in 2015.

The number of physicians per 10,000 of the population has reached 33 exceeding the national level (27) and approaching the level achieved by Sweden (39).

HE Humaid Al Qutami, Director-General, DHA

We also completed the Salama project within 21 months of its launch in February 2016. Salama is a DHA-wide project that aims to provide patients and doctors access to medical records through a patient portal and ensures that electronic patient medical record (EMR) is available across all DHA health facilities. More than 1.4 million patient medical records and more than 112 million transactions have been transferred to the Salama system. With the implementation of EMR across DHA hospitals and health centres, we are strongly moving ahead with our aim to create a paperless health system.

DHA hospitals achieved the Electronic Medical Records Adoption Model (EMRAM) score of 6 and our primary healthcare centres are rated as per Ambulatory EMRAM. EMRAM is accepted today worldwide as an international benchmark to stage hospital’s electronic efforts. The model uses a 0-7 stage scale to rate hospitals based on the extent to which they have adopted a paperless, digital system. Stage 7 means the hospital is a fully digital one with reference to medical records.

In pursuit of achieving the Dubai Smart Government vision, we have launched several health apps that will benefit the public. We also forayed into the use of technologies such as AI and 3D printing and successfully used 3D printing for complex surgeries as well as implemented it on a wide scale across our dental centres.

We developed a comprehensive 2016-2021 health strategy, that has 96 initiatives and is divided into short (quick wins), medium and long-term initiatives and has tangible goals so that we can achieve concrete results and sustain the momentum of growth to realise DHA’s vision “Towards a Healthy and Happier Community”. We launched several important policies that will directly benefit the public health system.

We launched the School Health Policy and the Hasana unified immunisation system, which will provide access to unified immunisation records at any facility and will ensure availability of relevant data. It will also enable the DHA to lay the foundation for the Population Health Management System, which will be robust enough to manage and contain the spread of communicable diseases. All private schools in Dubai will now use the Hasana system. Additionally, we launched the mental health strategy for the emirate, the investment strategy and our teams are working on launching strategies for Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) and Communicable Diseases (CDs) and Health Tourism.

What are some of the future projects?

Some of the projects we are working on include developing an oncology and cardiovascular centre of excellence, establishment of the innovation centre, the Rashid Medical Complex Project and a skin bank.The bank will be established before the end of 2019. It will be the first-of-its-kind in the Middle East and will provide a ready source of clinically safe human donor skin to treat severe burns and other cases where donor skin is needed to provide patients with a new lease of life. The bank will follow stringent international protocols and the DHA has already sought and obtained approval from the Islamic Affairs Department on the subject as per Sharia rules and regulations.

The DHA is planning to implement the Rashid Medical Complex project in phases. The complex will be built on 600,000 square metre space next to Rashid Hospital. It will be equipped with the latest technology and will provide a unique treatment experience for patients.

The Rashid Medical Complex will include a 10-floor hospital that will be home to 1,000 beds. The complex will include a five-floor Centre for outpatient clinics and 100 medical clinics. It will also have a six-floor building for medical clinics in addition to four specialised Centres (Cardiology, Neurology, Trauma and Emergency Medicine), Labs, a Rehabilitation Centre that can cater to 320 beds as well as Centres for Sport Injuries and two centres for research and conferences.

DHA recently launched the investment strategy for the health sector, can you tell us more about it.

I believe an efficient way to foster and promote health investment is to have a dedicated health investment promotion agency; several countries have successfully followed that model. At the DHA, we recently formed a specialised health investment and public private partnership (PPP) department. One of the initiatives of the department was the introduction of a detailed and in-depth health investment strategy, which was rolled out after extensive consultation and feedback with the private health sector.

The strategy will help foster and promote health investment in areas where there is a lack of services or where there are opportunities for growth. Investors will have easy access to information, support and guidance, at the same time; the investments will be need-based and thus will directly improve the existing landscape of the health sector in the Emirate. We will work on several PPP models to establish COE’s in Dubai. In November last year, we begun the tendering process for the establishment of a state-of-the-art cardiac centre.

The centre will follow the public-private partnership (PPP) model. DHA has appointed a team of advisors, led by PricewaterhouseCoopers and supported by Mott MacDonald as the technical adviser and Allen&Overy as the legal and transaction adviser, to help select a suitably qualified private-sector partner.

The Cardiac Centre of Excellence (CCoE) will be a 110-120-bed facility covering cardiac emergency and inpatient and outpatient services. The centre will be located in the Rashid Medical Complex with easy access to and from the Rashid Medical Complex Emergency and Trauma Centre.

We can expect other projects that will follow a PPP model as well. We believe the private sector is our partner and together we can enhance the health sector and provide the highest quality of medical services to the community and medical tourists alike.

How important is health regulation and what are some of the advances in the regulatory framework?

Regulation plays a pivotal role in the healthcare industry. Healthcare regulations and standards are necessary to provide safe and high-quality healthcare to every individual who accesses the system.

The DHA is continuously developing as well as updating its regulatory systems to provide healthcare professionals and facilities with convenient licensing processes. We will implement the Dubai Healthcare Professionals Registry to provide healthcare facilities and investors with detailed information about medical professionals in the Emirate.

The registry will include details about all medical professionals including doctors, nurses, paramedics, radiologists etc. Dubai has seen a robust growth in the number of medical professionals over the years. In 2009, there were 14,677 medical professionals in the Emirate, as of October 2018; there are approximately 38,000 medical professionals in Dubai. The registry has many benefits especially for professionals who no longer need to reapply if they leave the Emirate and work abroad.

We will also implement easier medical regulation processes in line with international best practices. The total number of health professional license increased by 15 per cent and number of licensed facilities increased by about 27 per cent. We are working on revamping the health governance structure, which will result in increased accountability of hospitals and further improve patient safety and experience.

What role will innovation and smart technologies play in the development of Dubai’s healthcare sector?

Innovation and smart technologies play an important role in our overall strategy. We have developed a Care Innovation Model as part of the DHA strategy, as we are keen to create an environment that is conducive to foster innovation and drive efficiency. Our aim is to promote an atmosphere that is conducive to innovation, not just for medical treatment but also in technology, healthcare management, pharmaceuticals, medical devices etc., so that all aspects of the health sector develop and thrive. Innovation cannot take place in isolation and thrives on collaboration; we are keen to work with innovators, healthcare entities, scientists and researchers so that we improve healthcare outcomes and focus on improved patient care and experience.

We are in the process of building an innovation centre and we are working with the private sector to establish the most suitable model to foster this concept. Innovation and technology go hand-in-hand. We are keen to harness the latest technologies in healthcare.

In terms of 3D printing, we have successfully deployed 3D technology across our dental services department. We have carried out complicated surgeries using this technology. The DHA also worked with the private sector on 3D-printed artificial legs that was used to provide amputees with a new lease to life. An important benefit of 3D printing is the cost-effectiveness of the technology, which makes it affordable across a wide spectrum of patients who need it and that is the scale we are looking at so that we can use technology to reach out to the maximum number of people.

In AI, we are working closely with world-class companies that have implemented it in various fields to see how we can utilise these services in the healthcare landscape of Dubai. The DHA’s team at Dubai Future Accelerators’ initiative is currently in its fifth cycle and is working with innovative firms in the field of healthcare.

As part of the fifth cycle, we are working with four international firms that will present proofs of concepts and pilot projects at DHA hospitals to see how their technology can be incorporated in Dubai. The technologies that we are accessing include Proximie, a cloud-based augmented reality platform that allows doctors to virtually transport themselves into any operating room or clinic to collaborate, guide and support surgeons and healthcare professionals.

We are also carrying out PoC’s for a portable and connected device developed by Scanbo that can capture multiple vitals from the human body and transfer data to mobile app using Bluetooth.

Dubai Health Investment Guide

DHA’s Dubai Health Investment Guide 2018 provides investors and private-sector health facilities with information on investment priorities, gaps in health provision and key developments in the health sector. The guide is available online on www.dha.gov.ae.

As advancements in technology continue to make waves in all fields of medicine, one particular field that continues to greatly benefit from innovative new devices, medicines and procedures is paediatric medicine. Scientists, researchers and physicians from around the world are working on creating novel solutions to treat complex paediatric diseases with the potential to change the lives of thousands of sick children around the world. 

One such example is a pioneering new study from Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) in London and The Francis Crick Institute that has seen researchers grow the world’s first oesophagus engineered from stem cells and successfully transplanted them into mice.

It is hoped this new research could pave the way for clinical trials of lab-grown food pipes for children with congenital and acquired gut conditions. In the study, researchers used a rat oesophagus “scaffold” and human gut cells to grow engineered tubes of oesophagus. These were implanted into mice and within a week the engineered tissue developed its own blood supply, which is important for a healthy gut that can squeeze down food.

Although still in its pre-clinical stage, research into tissue engineering such as this could lead to a new standard of care for patients with complex physical conditions especially in the case of children with damaged organs. The method avoids the need for a donated organ, which are often in short supply for the paediatric population and significantly lowers the risk of organ rejection.

Arab Health Magazine had the opportunity to sit down with co-lead author on the research paper, Professor Paolo De Coppi, who is a Consultant Paediatric Surgeon at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) and Reader and Head of Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine at the UCL Institute of Child Health in London, who shared his thoughts on innovation in paediatric medicine. 

Although the study is in pre-clinical stage, when do you think we can potentially see it used in the treatment of humans?
Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children (GOSH) in London has already started using similar tissue products in children. For example, GOSH has already conducted three successful stem-cell trachea transplants. GOSH was the first children’s hospital in the world to do this and remains the only children’s hospital in the world to be involved in conducting this cutting-edge work.

One of the patients, Ciaran Finn-Lynch underwent the transplant in March 2010 at GOSH, when his own trachea was removed and replaced by a donor windpipe laced with Ciaran’s own stem cells, so it would not be rejected. The donated trachea was obtained from a deceased adult in Italy and was stripped of the donor’s cells, down to the inert collagen. Ciaran’s bone marrow stem cells were collected at GOSH, isolated at the Royal Free Hospital (RFH) and returned to GOSH the same day, where they were applied to the implanted trachea inside Ciaran’s body. Biopsies of epithelial tissues – the lining of the organ – were taken from the patient’s removed trachea during surgery and applied as the new graft was implanted in his body, to kick-start the gradual growth of a lining in the transplanted organ.

The graft was injected with additional cytokines – proteins that stimulate cell growth – to support the growth and differentiation of cells within the new trachea. Following the transplant, Ciaran was given further cell growth-inducing compounds known as granulocyte colony-stimulating factors or G-CSF. This is the first attempt to grow stem cells in vivo – within the body rather than in a laboratory – in a child in an operation of this kind.

In another world-first, a biodegradable stent was inserted to maintain Ciaran’s airway while the cells regrew within the organ over the following six months.

When it comes to the most recent study in which researchers grew the world’s first oesophagus engineered from stem cells and successfully transplanted  them into mice, the oesophagus is a much more complex organ to work on. While the team has published research on pre-clinical trials in small animals, as well as is currently working on a study in larger animals, it will be two to three years before we can effectively and safely translate this approach to humans. A lot more research lies ahead but we are really excited about these promising pre-clinical findings. 

How important is the use of innovative therapies such as stem cell regeneration in the treatment of paediatric diseases?
Innovation is very important in children’s medicine. Most of the children who are seen at GOSH have a rare and complex condition, which means all the teams must constantly work and think innovatively in order to treat them. In adult cases, there are usually treatments that will work for the majority of patients. However, when it comes to children with rare and complex condition at GOSH, the treatments may have to be modified and adapted for every single child that is seen. This is why innovation is so important. 

Not only that, but tissue regenerative medicine can be very successful in children. In adults, there are fewer stem cells available and it is much more difficult to get the body to regenerate. In children, however, there is a lot more potential for regenerative medicine to provide effective and kinder treatment options. 

Children requiring transplants of the trachea or oesophagus often require multiple operations because, as they grow older, they grow out of the constructed materials implanted. This is why a trachea or oesophagus that is made from stem cells and grows with the child is a much better and kinder option for the child. 

Are there any other breakthrough medical innovations that we should be aware of in paediatrics?
GOSH is a globally renowned children’s hospital, championing innovation across more than 60 clinical specialties and providing groundbreaking treatments for the rarest and most complex conditions.

Alongside a focus on regenerative medicine research at GOSH, there are many breakthroughs being worked on by my colleagues in the hospital and in the University College London Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health. Examples include Professor Qasim and his team’s work on the world’s first use of gene-edited immune cells to treat an incurable leukaemia, as well as the haematology team’s work to make the innovative T-cell therapy available for international patients with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Not only are new research and treatments being pioneered at the hospital, but also new surgical techniques, such as laser ablation for epilepsy. GOSH expects to be the first European hospital to offer this pioneering procedure for children. 

Recently, I read an exciting research paper into the use of stem cells and gene therapy to cure a young Syrian boy of epidermolysis bullosa by a team in Germany. It’s very exciting to see where this type of medicine will go and how it can be used to help more children internationally.

Arab Health – the largest healthcare business platform in the MENA region – is all set to welcome an anticipated 84,500+ attendees from across the globe as it sets the stage for the world’s leading manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors to meet the medical and scientific community in the Middle East. 

To be held from 28 - 31 January 2019 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre and Conrad Dubai this is the perfect opportunity to stay abreast of the industry’s latest trends and advancements and engage with more than 4,150 companies from 66 countries that will be showcasing the latest healthcare technology, products and services.

Organised by Informa Healthcare, the 44th Arab Health Exhibition will also host the Arab Health Congress, reputed for delivering the highest quality programme of Continuing Medical Education (CME) to medical professionals. At this year’s Congress, international speakers will cover the latest updates and insights into cutting-edge procedures, techniques and skills across 11 CME-accredited conferences.

Innovation Hub
Working alongside government entities such as the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention, Dubai Health Authority, Department of Health Abu Dhabi and SEHA, Arab Health will host the new Innovation Hub – a dedicated area at the show for attendees to immerse themselves in the latest healthcare innovations.

The Innovation Hub will feature the Innovation Showcase allowing visitors to explore the latest healthcare technology including AI, disease management and home care devices, mobile device accessories, telemedicine platforms, to name a few.

The Innovation Hub will also be the platform for the inaugural Innov8 Talks at Arab Health. As well as daily free-to-attend talks with discussions led by keynote speakers, the Innov8 Talks will also host a series of pitch sessions for the region’s most creative and forward-thinking healthcare start-ups and SMEs to sell their ideas to an esteemed panel of judges that are involved in driving innovation in the UAE.

Arab Health Generates US$ 778 Million Worth of Business 
More than US$ 778 million worth of business was generated by exhibitors during the 2018 edition of the show, a figure that is in line with Alpen Capital’s projections that the GCC healthcare spend will reach US$104.6 billion in 2022. With an anticipated need for an additional 13,000 hospital beds and the employment of 10,000 new physicians to the region, the demand is being mitigated by the 700 healthcare projects worth US$ 60.9 billion under various stages of development as well as government initiatives such as the recently launched Dubai Health Investment Guide 2018-25 designed to increase private sector participation.

According to Ross Williams, Exhibition Director of Arab Health, “Some of the key factors stimulating the growth of the healthcare market in the region include the ageing population, increasing frequency of non-communicable disease, high cost of treatment and mandatory health insurance.

“The trade generated during the last edition of Arab Health is a strong indication that the private sector is also playing an important part in the development of the healthcare industry and we anticipate that these figures will continue to grow in subsequent years.” 

The Arab Health Exhibition and Congress experienced year-on-year (YoY) growth of 3 per cent in exhibitor numbers between 2017 and 2018 while this year sees a 2 per cent YoY growth. Dealers and distributors accounted for 37 per cent of total attendees in 2018 with the UAE, Saudi Arabia, India, Pakistan and Iran making up the top five countries looking to source new healthcare products and services. 

Robust International Representation
With 39 dedicated country pavilions, international representation at the show remains robust with many pavilions increasing in size and number of exhibiting companies. One example is that of the Polish country pavilion, which has seen its national participation grow from 39 exhibitors in 2018 to 50 exhibitors in 2019 signifying the growing interest in the UAE as a key market for the healthcare industry. Data revealed at The First Trade & Invest Forum held in October 2018 in Warsaw indicates that three times more companies in Poland ask about the possibility of exporting goods to the UAE than to the U.S. The interest in the UAE market among Polish companies is almost equal to the interest in European countries, which are natural trade partners for Poland. 

Who Will Attend
Over the past 43 years, hundreds of thousands of healthcare professionals across the globe have made Arab Health an essential part of their yearly calendar. 

Manufacturers of medical devices and equipment use Arab Health as an opportunity to showcase their latest products to the MENA region’s healthcare industry. Companies vary from large organisations such as Siemens and Philips to smaller business houses exhibiting for the first time. With thousands of products on display, business deals occur every minute of the show, truly making Arab Health the place where the healthcare world comes to do business.

For professionals who are tasked with purchasing and procurement responsibilities for healthcare facilities, educational providers and medical specialty associations, Arab Health is the ideal platform to get ahead of the upcoming year’s product needs.

Arab Health also provides a beneficial experience for all dealer and distributor job functions – from senior management of larger organisations that are looking to connect with key industry players, sales and business development professionals tasked with expanding their product portfolios and entrepreneurs hoping to source the next ‘big product’ to supply in their country. 

What attracts medical practitioners to the show are the incredible insights it offers into the advancements of the healthcare industry through the exhibition, and the dedicated CME-accredited conferences and hands-on-training workshops that provide the opportunity for growth in multiple fields and disciplinaries. 

Stay up-to-date
From state-of-the-art imaging equipment to the most cost-effective disposables; developments in surgery to advances in prosthetics, Arab Health continues to be at the heart of healthcare in the Middle East. As the largest collection of healthcare product manufacturers and service providers under one roof, Arab Health is also your one-stop shop for all your healthcare sourcing and procurement needs. 
In addition, a large number of business, leadership and CME conferences and workshops aim to bridge the gap in medical knowledge across a broad spectrum of medical specialities and disciplines.

Perpetuating Education
Skill Development at Arab Health Congress

The 44th edition of Arab Health Congress will take place at the Dubai World Trade Centre and the Conrad Dubai and will feature 11 Continuing Medical Education (CME) conferences for attending healthcare professionals.

New venue 
The Total Radiology Conference and the Obs & Gyne Conference will be held at the Conrad Dubai, directly opposite the main exhibition venue during the show. The new venue allows for more attendees to benefit from these conferences as well as further enhance the delegate experience.

Total Radiology Conference: 28-31 January
This four-day scientific meeting will present the latest advances in medical imaging, accurate imaging diagnosis and improvement of care quality for radiology patients within the theme “Practical advice and updates in radiology practice.”

What’s New
– The Total Radiology Conference will take place at the Conrad Dubai to provide you with a better experience! 
– Leadership lectures: Management skills for radiologists 
– Technical skills workshops and hands-on training for senior radiologists 
– Interactive masterclass on MRI for radiographers 

Orthopaedics Conference: 28-31 January
This conference will offer the latest information on orthopaedic treatments, advancements and research breakthroughs. Delegates can discuss the technological developments in the field, as well as the recent advances made in the diagnostics, management and therapeutics of orthopaedic diseases. This platform will also provide an opportunity to identify key areas for future research and developments in basic and clinical orthopaedics.

What’s New
– Advanced and basic technical skills workshops and hands-on training 
– More interactive sessions featuring debates and panel discussions 

Surgery Conference: 28-31 January
Discerning general surgeons can refine their procedural skills while also reviewing the latest best practice to perform advanced procedures in hepato-pancreato-biliary, minimally invasive surgery, upper GI, bariatric and onco-surgery. The conference will cover both theoretical aspects and case-based experiences to improve technical skills. 

What’s New
– Dedicated symposia on new topics: Management skills, tumour board review, HPB surgery 
– A full day of biliary disease based on popular demand and delegate feedback 
– More interactive sessions with audience polling on debates

Obs & Gyne Conference: 28-31 January
Placing emphasis on practical application of the evidence-based topics presented, this will cover the most up-to-date information on treatments and technologies available in the fields of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Experts will discuss the latest trends and treatments covering multiple sub-specialist areas such as imaging, maternal-foetal medicine, MIS, reproductive health and a myriad spectrum of women’s diseases faced by practicing OBGYN professionals. 

What’s New
– The Obs-Gyne Conference will be held at the Conrad Dubai .
–  Introduction of dedicated poster presentations sessions, enabling forefront research and emerging developments
–  New sessions on hot topics such as imaging and high-risk obstetrics 

Gastroenterology Conference: 28-29 January
The agenda here is to provide a forum for all gastroenterologists within the region to exchange ideas, discuss innovative methods and review new developments in the field. The programme addresses the hottest topics and controversies as well as the latest in essential knowledge to reduce procedural complications and hasten patient recovery. 

What’s New
– Technical skills workshops after the conference 
– Expert speakers from U.S. and UK 

Diabetes Conference: 28-29 January 
Participants will learn about the most relevant developments in diabetes prevention, treatment and management. Clinicians can expect a lively exchange of ideas related to the technology and prevention of diabetes and related illnesses. 

What’s New
– Technical skills workshops and hands-on training 
– Agenda features a non-biased technology-focused session 

Paediatrics Conference: 28-29 January 
Hear from notable experts from around the globe as they present the most up-to-date information on diagnosis and treatment of paediatric conditions. This is also a unique opportunity to witness the future of paediatrics as it unfolds and to network with leaders in paediatrics from around the world. 

What’s New
– Now a two-day comprehensive and concise programme featuring top international speakers 
– Interactive masterclasses designed to address common challenges, led by international faculty 

Public Health Conference: 30-31 January
The agenda covers several important areas in which public health bodies can contribute to making overall emergency and disaster management more effective. Speakers will discuss health effects of some of the more important sudden impact disasters and potential future threats while outlining the requirements for effective emergency medical and public health response to these events. 

What’s New
– Two-day comprehensive agenda 
– Each session offers a global, regional and local speaker for a well-rounded perspective 

Anaesthesia Conference: 30-31 January 
Held under the theme ‘Tailoring anaesthesia to the individual’s needs’, the programme will enable anaesthesia specialists to apply the latest research with the patient at the heart of decision-making and is designed to minimise patient risk, reduce errors and optimise outcomes in a variety of challenging conditions.
 
What’s New
– Global perspective on solutions to key challenges in the field of anaesthesia 
– 20+ speakers 
– Over 8 interactive Q&A sessions giving delegates face time with anaesthesia gurus 

Emergency Medicine Conference: 30-31 January 
Through the inclusion of trauma focused symposiums, this carefully designed programme aims to deliver advanced educational content for both emergency and trauma physicians that are involved in emergency and critical care. Speakers will provide evidence-based global insight into the management of complex emergency cases, by addressing the latest research and guidelines. 

What’s New
– Practical advice shared to support improved multidisciplinary care 
– Dedicated debates on the latest controversial topics for each session 
– Inclusion of trauma focused symposiums within the conference

Quality Management Conference: 30-31 January
It will provide senior level delegates with the unique opportunity to engage with world-class quality management experts; all having distinct insight into the pitfalls and potentials, concerning healthcare quality specifically. Focusing on ‘practical steps’, this year’s conference serves as a practical guideline for healthcare professionals, with the tools and techniques for supporting effective quality planning, assurance, quality control and improvement, being openly shared. 

What’s New
– New speaker line-up including speakers from renowned international organisations 
– KPI hands-on interactive workshop session 
– Dedicated discussions following each session

Trainings and Workshops

Ansell Workshop - Safety Innovations in the OR: 28-29 Jan

It will cover topics such as Breakthrough System in Double Gloving, New Gloving Solutions for Allergies, Advanced Glove Technology Focused on Hand Health and Safety and Breach Protection During Surgery. It will take place at Al Ain J, above Hall 4, Dubai World Trade Centre.

Masterclasses Ultrasound - Liver and Musculoskeletal (MSK) & Small Parts:  28-31 Jan

Canon Medical will be hosting two sessions for those who want to expand their clinical capabilities with ultrasound. Each session will consist of a lecture followed by a live scan using the latest equipment. It will take place at Conrad Dubai, Khasifa Room, Level 2.

Transforming Ideas into Reality at the Innovation Hub

Healthcare start-ups and SMEs will showcase latest technological developments at this dedicated platform.

Digital health start-ups are said to have raised US$ 11.5 billion in 2017, up 27 per cent from 2016, exponentially increasing the pace of digital innovation in healthcare, according to a new report titled Technology: Accelerating Innovation Across Healthcare. The report outlines the positive impact of technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Virtual Reality (VR), wearable technologies, 3D printing and drones as an agent for transformation in healthcare.

According to Ross Williams, Exhibition Director of Arab Health: “The market is ripe for new healthcare start-ups and entrepreneurs looking to make their mark on the industry. Over the years, we have seen growing interest in new products and innovations that will contribute to shaping the future of healthcare. Hospitals, medical device manufacturers and service providers across the globe are facing increasing pressure to innovate in order to become competitive.” 

Innovation is clearly driving the healthcare industry forward and advances in technologies are creating vast new possibilities and opportunities for the UAE healthcare sector. 

In line with this, Arab Health 2019 will introduce a dedicated Innovation Hub to highlight some of these technological advances and innovations. At the Innovation Hub, you can discover some of the significant breakthroughs and ground-breaking technologies that will shape the future of healthcare and find out what game-changing innovations will offer provisions for cutting-edge care, improved operational efficiency, better patient outcomes, and reduced costs. 

Come, discover the significant breakthroughs and the latest healthcare innovations at the Innovation Hub - Arab Health’s new dedicated zone!  

The two key sections at the Innovation Hub include:
Innovation Showcase: At this dedicated showcase area, you can meet and discover the start-ups, SMEs, and innovators. Located within the central Plaza Hall, companies will display and demonstrate new products and innovations that will contribute to shaping the future of healthcare.

Product areas to explore:
• Artificial Intelligence
• Disease management devices and technology
• Health monitors and home care devices
• Healthcare start-up companies
• Mobile device accessories
• Smart watches, fitness trackers and applications
• Telemedicine platforms

Innov8 Talks: Listen to start-ups and entrepreneurs present their healthcare innovations to a panel of industry experts and potential investors at the dedicated seminar theatre at the Innovation Hub.  
Innov8 Talks will host eight pitches, each eight-minute-long, across each day of Arab Health. The judging panel will determine the best innovation.

At the free-to-attend sessions, discussions will be led by keynote speakers, setting the theme for each day. Afternoon sessions will have a regional focus. The topics include:
Monday, January 28: Future of Care and Treatment
Tuesday, January 29: Changes in the Healthcare Industry to Enhance Patient Care and Delivery, and Emerging Innovations and Achieving the Quadruple Aim of Quality, Access, Cost and Patient Experience.
Wednesday, January 30: Disease Prevention and Management 
Thursday, January 31: Patient Safety and Quality. 

Find out more on – www.arabhealthonline.com/talks