Joint Commission International

Latha Krishnan

Joint Commission Interna-tional (JCI) is a division of Joint Commission Resourc-es, (JCR) Inc., a private, not-

for-profit affiliate of The Joint Commission. JCI extends The Joint Commission’s mission worldwide by assisting healthcare organisations outside the United States to continuously improve patient safety and the quality of care. JCI provides international accreditation and certification as well as education and consulting services. JCI is accredited by the International Society for Quality in Health Care (ISQua).

JCI provides services to organi-sations of all sizes — at every stage in their quality improvement jour-ney — individual providers, hos-pital systems and ministries of health. JCI’s standards contribute to organisational efforts to create a framework for safe, reliable care that meets patient expectations. The requirements for accredita-tion also include International Patient Safety Goals that high-light problematic areas in health-care and describe evidence and expert-based consensus solutions to these problems. Through JCI accreditation and certification, healthcare organisations have ac-cess to a variety of resources and services that connect them with the international community: an international quality measure-ment system for benchmarking; risk reduction strategies and best practices; tactics to reduce ad-verse events; and the annual Ex-

ecutive Briefing Programmes.While reinforcing its global sig-

nificance as the leader in accredi-tation for healthcare organisa-tions, JCI has successfully entrenched the quality drive in the Middle East. “This is the top region in the world for the num-ber of organisations accredited by JCI. The United Arab Emirates

has the highest total with 56 ac-credited organisations, and Saudi Arabia is second with 40,” says Dr Ashraf Ismail, Managing Director of International Services for JCI’s Middle East Office in Dubai.

“We are proud of our reach in this region, which is in large part due to the support from the gov-ernments and ministries of health

here. In addition, the fourth edi-tion of the JCI Standards manual in Arabic was recently published. We reach out to the healthcare industry answering their queries and helping them through the process of accreditation. And most encouraging is the apprecia-tion of the healthcare communi-ty,” Ismail adds.

JCI accredits and certifies hos-pitals, laboratories, medical trans-

port organisations, care continuum, ambulatory

care and primary care providers that under-go setting specific evaluations to achieve “The Gold Seal of Ap-

proval.” They also of-fer Clinical Care Pro-

gram Certification to demonstrate excellence in

the integration and coordination of care for specific diseases. As part of the accreditation process, the JCI team works closely with the healthcare organisation from the time of application through the on-site survey process and continuing through the entire ac-creditation cycle.

JCI consultants bring expertise and best practices gained in work-ing with the global community. The focus is on healthcare quality improvement and patient safety, with expertise in infection con-trol, medication safety, facility

safety, and accreditation stan-dards compliance.

“Such high-quality JCI pro-grammes are in demand all over the region including healthcare providers in Egypt, Libya and Tu-nisia, which are now reawakening after the Arab Spring,” says Is-mail. “This is evident through the increase in demand for JCR pub-lications on quality and safety in healthcare.”

In addition to offering more than 60 publications, JCI con-ducts training sessions in the Middle East for healthcare organ-isations and professionals. The International Advanced Practi-cum 2011 for healthcare leaders and executives to deepen under-standing of JCI standards was well attended by 120 delegates from all over the Middle East and Europe.

Through these and all its activi-ties, JCI has rightly become an invaluable partner to healthcare organisations in their quest for quality, safety and efficiency.

Working on healthy solutionsJCI’s mission is to transform patient safety and improve the quality of healthcare for every patient across the globe

Create a culture of safety and •quality within an organisation that strives to continually im-prove patient care processes and resultsImprove public trust that the or-•ganisation is concerned for pa-tient safety and quality of careProvide a safe and efficient work •environment that contributes to worker satisfactionNegotiate with sources of pay-•ment for care with data on the

quality of careListen to patients and their fami-•lies, respect their rights, and in-volve them in the care process as partnersCreate a culture that is open to •learning from the timely report-ing of adverse events and safety concernsEstablish collaborative plat-•forms that set priorities for a continuous leadership in quality and patient safety levels

Why get JCI aCCredItatIon

Our hospitals adhere to the highest standards of quality, and we have the seal to prove it.

Relax . . . Recover . . .

You are in safe hands

www.alnoorhospital .com

Khalifa Street BranchToll Free : 800 55 666Airport Road BranchToll Free : 800 26 427Al Ain City BranchToll Free : 800 26 425

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The Dubai Health Authority has chosen the Joint Commission In-ternational (JCI) as the accredit-ing body for DHA’s initiatives to promote quality and patient safety in all clinical and managerial func-tions of hospitals and centres.

The accreditation journey started in 2006 and by October 2007, the following hospitals achieved the JCI accreditation: Latifa Hospital (for-merly known as Al Wasl Hospital), Dubai Hospital and Rashid Hospi-tal. The DHA Thalassemia Center achieved accreditation in 2007, be-coming the first ambulatory care or-ganisation in the world to be accred-ited by JCI. Later in 2010, the DHA Airport Medical Center achieved its accreditation for ambulatory care standards and became the first such centre in the world.

Accreditation is recognised as a distinguished management initia-tive by the Dubai Government Ex-cellence Program (DGEP) and the DHA was honoured in 2009 by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-Presi-dent and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, for its achieve-ments in this regard. Accreditation was successfully maintained and in-cluded performance improvement, which was recognised by JCI during reaccreditation process in 2010. Maintaining accreditation through continuous quality improvement efforts was also one of the strategic initiatives of the DHA.

The DHA hospitals and centres were selected twice by JCI to train interested healthcare leaders in the region and to share their experi-ence of accreditation. Acute Myo-cardial Infarction Programme in Rashid Hospital received JCI Clini-cal Care Program Certification in 2009, demonstrating excellence in the integration and coordination of care for treatment of “heart attack” patients. The programme was rec-ognised as an innovative idea and received the Dubai Quality Award under the patronage of His High-

ness Shaikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President, Dubai Civil Aviation Authority; Chairman, Dubai Airports and Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline and Group.

Some of DHA’s achievements related to JCI include implementa-tion of World Health Organisation (WHO) recognised international patient safety goals, promotion of patient rights and responsibilities, promotion of patient and family education, improvement in infec-tion prevention and control prac-tices, promotion of culture of safety and ensuring recruitment of highly qualified healthcare professionals with appropriate credentials. This

accreditation also enables DHA to benchmark its performance inter-nationally with other healthcare organisations. For example, Dubai Hospital participated in Interna-tional Cardiac Surgery Benchmark-ing Project.

Accreditation process has further enhanced the culture of safety and quality within DHA and the Author-ity continuously strives to improve patient care. It listens to patients and their families, respects their rights and involves them in deci-sion-making about their care.

The accreditation journey has further improved public trust, pa-tient safety and the provision of quality healthcare. The lessons

learned include leadership, com-mitment, teamwork, staff involve-ment, continuous improvement and patient focus. DHA has vowed to strive to not just meet but also ex-ceed the needs and expectations of its patients. Patient satisfaction and improved health outcomes are im-portant to DHA and it will continue to remain the Authority’s long-term aim.

Accreditation is a continuous process and DHA will continue the journey into the future, setting high standards to serve its patients bet-ter.

Hospital services sector (Hss)HSS is a family of four hospitals

— Latifa Hospital, Dubai Hospital, Rashid Hospital and the relatively new Hatta Hospital. DHA’s vision is to ensure that its public hospi-tals become the preferred choice in the Middle East. DHA’s mission is to provide evidence-based, inter-nationally recognised, secondary and tertiary healthcare services for patients in the UAE and the region through highly qualified profes-sionals.

DHA’s JCI accreditation journey started in 2006 and by October 2007 Latifa Hospital Dubai and Rashid Hospital achieved accreditation

Excelling in clinical and managerial functions

HoSPITAL SERVIcES SEcToR STATISTIcS:

•Employees=5,326 •Physicians=744 •Beds=1,542 •Accident&EmergencyDepartmentvisits=245,325 •OutpatientDepartmentvisits=372,178 •Inpatientadmissions=71,523 •Walk-inclinicvisits=82,222

Bahrain Specialist Hospital (BSH) became the first and only hospital to be accredited by the JCI. BSH was awarded the accreditation after a full review of the hospital’s facilities, practices and patient care. BSH scored highly in all areas, meeting the 1222 standards set by JCI as measures for evaluation. It scored 96 out of 100.

“We couldn’t be more delighted with this honour bestowed upon us by JCI, whose accreditation is recognised worldwide as a symbol of quality that reflects an organisation’s ability to meet the highest standards of pa-tient care,” said Dr Kasim Aradati, CEO of Bahrain Specialist Hospital.

BSH specialties include: Pulmonary Medicine, Otorhinolaryngology (ENT), Dermatology, Ophthalmology (Eye), Urology, Obstetrics, Gy-naecology and IVF; General and Laparoscopic Surgery, Plastic Surgery, Orthopaedic Surgery, Internal Medicine, Cardiology, Neurology, Nephrol-ogy, Paediatrics, Paediatric Surgery, Gastroenterology, Dentistry and Oral Surgery; Endocrinology, Rheumatology, Psychiatry, Audiology, Physical Medicine and Physiotherapy, Nutrition and Weight Management, Anaes-thesia and Pain Management, Emergency Medicine, Radiology, Labora-tory.

The review of BSH, its services and its highly specialised medical team was carried out by a four-member JCI Survey Team.

The head of the survey team was concentrated on the building and the surrounding facilities in terms of safety for the patients, visitors and em-ployees in terms of its preparation for and protection against fire, emergen-cies or infections.

Another member, a doctor concentrated on the medical team and medi-cal practices in general. A third team member, a nurse, concentrated on the Nursing Team and their practices. The fourth team member functioned as an observer. The JCI Survey Team’s visit to BSH lasted four days from Oc-tober 16 to 19, 2011.

Bahrain Specialist Hospital becomes Kingdom’s first JCI accredited hospital

BSHemergeswithJci colours

BahraIn SpeCIalISt hoSpItal

License No. 29/1/1/19/2/2012

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Committed to care

The United Arab Emirates has had perhaps one of the fastest growing economies in the world over the last 40 years, and makes for an inspir-ing and amazing story of a country’s transformation from a trading and pearl-diving economy to full-scale industrialisation, general well-being and prosperity for all its citizens and residents. NMC Healthcare, which at 37 years old is only slightly younger than this young country, and has tru-ly complemented and matched the growth of the UAE over the years.

Today, after almost four decades of existence, NMC Healthcare has emerged as the largest private healthcare provider in the UAE, both in terms of its nationwide network of facilities and services as well as in terms of patients treated. Ap-proximately 1.8 million patients were treated in 2011 — that’s almost 5,000 patients a day across all the NMC Healthcare facilities.

NMC Healthcare has hospitals, medical centres, pharmacies and a distribution business called NMC Trading that is one of the UAE’s largest distributors for pharmaceu-ticals, medical and scientific equip-ment, food, veterinary, educational

and consumer products. NMC Healthcare currently has six facili-ties across Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Dubai and Sharjah — the four largest cities in the UAE and is the only healthcare provider providing services across such a breadth of geographies in the country. NMC Specialty hospitals in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Al Ain have received accreditation from the Joint Commission International (JCI), which is considered as the gold stan-dard by the international medical fraternity.

Due to the comprehensive range of healthcare services provided, sup-ported by experienced medical pro-fessionals, technologically advanced

diagnostics services, and a growing reputation for clinical excellence, the NMC Specialty Hospitals serve as the referral centre of choice for smaller medical centres and clinics in the region. The NMC Specialty Hospitals offer specialised treat-ments in all specialties and special-ist doctors are readily accessible for providing expert consultation to re-ferring physicians.

In its endeavour to match and ex-ceed patients’ expectations, NMC Healthcare has launched a number of specialised healthcare initiatives in a variety of specialties including:

VIP clinics with zero waiting •time and express consultations and treatments in a luxurious ambienceNeonatology•Vitreo-retinal surgery•Dental Centre of Excellence •(including oral and maxillo-facial surgery)Cardiac Center of Excellence — •NMC HeartArthroscopy and joint replace-•ment surgeryDay surgery centres for doing •minor procedures in a friendly,

non-hospital setting with quick discharge

Led by NMC Healthcare, the UAE now has developed international healthcare delivery capabilities and has demonstrated excellence in multiple specialties with a perfect blend of technological excellence, comprehensive infrastructure, com-petent care and heartfelt hospitality. Having UAE’s most specialised and comprehensive patient care teams, NMC Healthcare offers the safest care and is thus attracting lots of overseas patients who choose NMC as their one-stop destination for medical services.

As per Dr B R Shetty, Founder, Managing Director and CEO, NMC Healthcare, “The great success achieved by NMC over the year re-flects the peoples’ trust and confi-dence, but the phenomenal growth of NMC’s businesses would not have been possible without the patronage and support of the royal family of the UAE.” NMC Healthcare is em-barking on an aggressive expansion programme and is going to open four new hospitals in Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the coming months.

nMC healthCare

nMC Healthcare has emerged as the largest private healthcare providers in the UAE

A world-class operating room in B R Medical Suites, NMc Healthcare’s newest facility in Dubai Healthcare city

Dr B R Shetty signs the lease agreement for 20,000 square metres of space to set up a hos-pital in Dubai Investment Park

NMC Healthcare has hospitals, medical centres, pharmacies and a distribution

business called NMC Trading that is one of the UAE’s largest distributors for pharmaceuticals, medical and scientific equipment, food, veterinary, educational and consumer products. NMC Healthcare currently has six facilities across Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Dubai and Sharjah — the four largest cities in the UAE and is the only healthcare provider providing services across such a breadth of geographies in the country

Training to serve betterneW MoWaSat hoSpItal (nMh)

A series of workshops held at new Mowasat Hospital are helping its staff to improve relations with both patients and colleagues

New Mowasat Hospital (NMH) con-tinues to polish the skills of its staff members through continued invest-ment in their training and develop-ment to ensure clinical excellence and patient care of the best quality..

Two workshops titled ‘Communi-cation for Medical Professionals’ and ‘Performance Management’ were held for New Mowasat’s physicians with the intention of allowing them to explore alternative and more prac-tical ways of communicating with pa-tients and colleagues and also man-aging the exquisite performance, which they have always been known for.

Held in a consultative and infor-mative way with focus on the impor-tance of communication and how language, emotion and objectivity affect communication, the workshop organised by Edara Group addressed issues like performance manage-ment system for physicians and the day-to-day communication skills with patients and colleagues.

The workshops echoed effective feedback from the participants. “The workshop was a great learning expe-rience and we look forward to more such interventions in the future” one of the participants stated. Another participant explained that the presen-tation and discussion were very use-ful and gave them the chance to share

views, problems and suggestions.Moreover, Human Resources

Manager Majeb Al Ajmi declared that these training sessions were a part of the hospital’s strategy of developing the skills of the hospital’s staff of phy-sicians, nurses, administrators and technicians to ensure that the health-care services for patients and visitors was of the highest quality.

Majeb added that regular training was aimed at maintaining the hos-pital’s role in the community, some-thing that is characteristic of New Mowasat Hospital.

Thus, the hospital is always keen on providing skill-building and motivat-ing workshops that teach principles of customer service, communication

skills, dealing with emotions, prob-lem-solving, maintaining motivation and emotional control. Such work-shops are excellent opportunities that allow the participants to learn the techniques of increasing their level of emotional intelligence to make their jobs easier and less stressful.

Since 1965, New Mowasat Hospital strives for excellence and exceeding expectations. The hospital is the first and only one in Kuwait to achieve the highest two accreditations for quality health care; the Joint Commission In-ternational (JCI) and the Accredita-tion Canada International (ACI) Plat-inum Level. Our passion for quality makes us the first choice of patients and medical practitioners.

Majeb Al Ajmi May Roumani

communication workshop for new Mowasat physicians

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Where standards and care matter most

Fifteen years after the launch of the hospital, which was designed to deliver the highest standards of US healthcare to patients, the Ameri-can Hospital Dubai continues to set quality standards in the sector.

From the outset, the hospital was a pioneer in the region, striving to meet the rigorous standards de-manded for international accredita-tion and successfully underwent an evaluation to become the first pri-vate hospital in the Middle East to be awarded the Joint Commission International Accreditation (JCIA) in May 2000.

Since then, the same exceptional standards have been maintained and the hospital has earned three re-accreditations (in 2003, 2006 and 2009) from Joint Commission International (JCI) to maintain this status, following rigorous on-site surveys. This commitment to qual-ity is even more significant as the hospital has continued to expand dramatically from its original 100-

bed campus to almost 400 beds, and introduced an array of new tertiary and speciality care capabili-ties.

The Joint Commission Interna-tional Accreditation process is de-signed to create and support a cul-ture of safety and quality and plays an important role in assisting the hospital in determining the need for continuous quality improve-ment from an external, indepen-dent and expert perspective. The standards provided by the JCI have been proven to guide healthcare or-ganisations’ activities and actions, which will result in the best possible outcome for the patient and the or-ganisation.

Joint Commission International is a subsidiary of the American ac-creditation organisation, which sets the standards for the quality of healthcare organisations in the USA. JCI carries out surveys of its accredited hospitals every three years and accreditation is only

awarded after an intensive five-day survey is undertaken by an evalua-tion team from the JCI.

JCI standards focus on the areas that most directly impact patient care. These include access to care, assessment of patients, infection control, patient and family rights, and education. Standards also ad-dress facility management and safety, staff qualifications, quality improvement, hospital leadership, and management of information.

Joint Commission International’s last on-site evaluation of the Ameri-can Hospital Dubai took place in April 2009 and was conducted by a team of international healthcare experts, including a physician, nurse and hospital administrator. The five-day survey covered 376 JCI standards and more than 1,000 hospital activities were examined.

“The American Hospital Dubai aims to create and sustain an en-vironment that focuses on qual-ity, safety and continuous im-

provement. Accreditation plays an important part in this process by stimulating continuous, systematic improvements in a hospital’s perfor-mance and the outcomes of patient care,” says Thomas Murray, CEO of the American Hospital Dubai.

“Maintaining our accreditation is a continuation of the quality jour-ney, and is only achievable through the collaboration of all our physi-cians and hospital staff members as we continue to expand and de-velop our services,” adds Murray. “Our last survey by JCI was very extensive and rigorous and we were delighted to report that the hospital passed the inspection with a very high degree of compliance across all JCI standards.”

Thanks to the dedication of the exceptional team of people at the American Hospital Dubai, the hos-pital has earned a leadership posi-tion in the region that it is deter-mined to preserve for the benefit of the community.

aMerICan hoSpItal dUBaI

The American Hospital Dubai aims to create and sustain an environment that focuses on quality, safety and continuous improvement

Pioneer private teaching hospital

SpeCIalty hoSpItal

Specialty Hospital is a centre of excellence not only at the national level but also globally

The Specialty Hospital in Amman-Jordan is a pioneer private teaching hospital in the region, delivering a full range of high-quality diagnostic and therapeutic services using state-of-the art medical technology.

Since the hospital was estab-lished, it has given a lot of attention to the quality of its services and the safety of patients. Being certified by all the available national and inter-national accreditations, excellence awards and ISO — including but not limited to: the Joint Commission In-ternational Accreditation (JCI), the Healthcare Accreditation Council HCAC, King Abdullah Award for Excellence, ISO 14001, ISO 18001 OHSAS, ISO 9001:2008, ISO 15189, HACCP, MECCA award — the Spe-cialty Hospital has become the most

awarded and accredited hospital in the region, which in turn increased the quality of care and led the hos-pital to be a destination of choice for international patients. Medical tour-ists from the region, Europe, USA

and Canada, constitute 50 per cent of the number of patients treated at the Specialty Hospital, making the hospital an excellence centre not only at the national level but also globally.

Gulf International Cancer Cen-tre (GICC), Abu Dhabi, is the first outpatient facility in the Gulf to provide cancer care following US clinical standards.

GICC has been accredited by the Joint Commission Internation-al, which has evaluated this ambu-latory care organisation and found it meeting the international health care quality standards for patient care and management.

Its services include cancer di-agnosis with PET CT (the first operating centre in the UAE), He-matology — Oncology and Radia-tion Oncology offering the latest techniques and equipment in this ever-evolving medical specialty.

The centre’s building is spread over 4,000 square metres and run by highly qualified staff and man-agement professionals from the US and Europe.

GICC’s vision is to lead as the oncology healthcare provider for cancer treatment in the UAE and Gulf, setting a new standard of outstanding care and exemplary patient service.

Its mission has been to provide a compassionate setting for patients and their families while offering state-of-the-art cancer treatment. It believes in the dignity of all pa-tients living with cancer and re-spects their physical, emotional and spiritual needs.

Patients contacting GICC can discover the difference its quality of care and leading innovations can have in the fight against cancer.

Gulf’s first outpatient cancer facilityGICC’s services include cancer diagnosis with PET CT, Hematology — Oncology and Radiation Oncology. It also offers the latest techniques and equipment in this specialty

gUlf InternatIonal CanCer Centre

GICC’s vision is to lead as the

oncology healthcare provider for cancer treatment in the UAE and Gulf, setting a new standard of outstanding care and exemplary patient service

Dubai’s Medcare Hospital looks to be on course for a strong 2012, with its plans to increase its services being successfully rea-lised this year. The Jumeirah-based health-care institution, which opened in March 2007, will shortly be inaugurating two new establishments.

The first of Medcare’s new facilities is a tertiary clinic in the city’s JBR district. The second is a dedicated orthopaedic and spi-nal hospital on Shaikh Zayed Road. Both will be up and running by the first quarter of the year.

Medcare Hospital, the premium arm of the reputed health-care provider DM Healthcare, has built its reputation for first-class service delivery by setting up centres of excellence in orthopaedics, obstetrics and laparoscopic surgery. Dr Azad Moopen, re-nowned entrepreneur, philanthropist and Chairman of DM Healthcare and Medcare Hospital, says that one of the institution’s main endeavours is to help the local com-munity by increasing awareness about ill-ness and injury prevention.

“We have strived to provide a model of care that complements the region’s health-care delivery requirements and one that in-corporates the diverse culture and social attitudes found here,” Dr Azad Moopen says. “Medcare Hospital also participates in local health-care initiatives to promote awareness on breast cancer, accident pre-

vention, diabetes, obesity and cardiovascu-lar disease.”

“Medcare Hospital’s success in delivering the highest-quality medical care has been the driving force for our expansion plans and we are very pleased to offer a greater range of health-care services for our clients this year,” says Ala Atari, CEO, Medcare. “We have been experiencing a strong de-mand for our services and are working at full in-patient capacity — our new dedicated fa-cilities will allow us to extend our range of professional health-care services to both residents and visitors.”

Medcare Hospital was one of the first UAE health-care institutions to receive JCI ac-creditation, with the accolade being con-ferred just seven months after its opening. The organisation was also honoured with the Excellence in Surgical Services award at Arab Health 2011.

Dubai’s Medcare Hospital aims to help the local community by increasing awareness about illness and injury prevention

Ala AtariDr Azad Moopen

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Greater range of health-care services

We have strived to provide a model of

care that complements the region’s health-care delivery requirements and one that incorporates the diverse culture and social attitudes found here

dr azad Moopen

Improving the quality of life

Al Noor Hospital is a well-established healthcare operation and manage-ment company based in Abu Dhabi. It owns and operates Al Noor Hospital that was established in 1985 and has developed into a leading private hos-pital in the emirate of Abu Dhabi.

Al Noor Hospital specialises in Healthcare Management and pro-vides expertise to clients in many areas. In particular, the company has extensive experience in the manage-ment and operation of acute hospi-tals and the provision of consultancy services in all areas of healthcare ac-tivity. The company has strong and active links with affiliates in United Kingdom’s National Health Service and the Health Authority Abu Dhabi in addition to a number of interna-tional health institutions.

The company is committed to a con-tinuing process of improvement in all areas of the hospital’s activities, the effi-cient use of resources, and the develop-ment of education and training.

Al Noor Hospital firmly believes that high-quality and accessible health-care are a fundamental element of any society that strives to improve its overall quality of life. We assembled an experienced international hospi-tal operation team that is qualified to deliver excellent healthcare manage-ment and operation services.

In April 2000 Al Noor was awarded the prestigious ISO 2002 Certificate, the first private hospital in Abu Dha-bi to achieve this award. In 2002, Al Noor won the International Award for Best Performance. Al Noor has continued to succeed by winning the Shaikh Khalifa Excellence awards in 2003, 2005 and 2007. Most recently the award of JCIA Accreditation for Al Noor Hospital Al Ain City, Al Noor Hospital Khalifa Street and Al Noor Hospital Airport Road, Abu Dhabi.

The hospital provides a wide range of inpatient and outpatient medical and surgical services with 24 hours accident and emergency services to the residents of Abu Dhabi and Al Ain City, the other emirates and patients from the other Gulf states. Equipped with the latest, most advanced medi-cal equipment, the hospital remains an inventor, always keen to introduce the latest diagnostic and treatment techniques.

Al Noor Hospital moved to a new purpose-designed 100-bedded facil-ity in Khalifa Street in Abu Dhabi in mid-1999. Fully equipped with the latest state-of-the-art equipment Al Noor provides a range of services to the residents of Abu Dhabi:

al noor Hospital al ain cityUnder the guidance of Shaikh

Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan and as directed by Shaikh Mohammed bin Butti Al Hamid, Al Noor Medical Company opened a private hospital in the centre of Al Ain City in November 2005 to serve the local community of nationals and residents. The new fa-cilities at Al Noor Hospital Al Ain City have further enhanced the healthcare environment and private insurance also exists.

Al Noor Hospital Airport Road AbuDhabi

Under the guidance of Shaikh Sultan bin Zayed Al Nahyan and as directed by Shaikh Mohammed bin Butti Al Hamid, Al Noor Medical Company began the process of estab-lishing a private hospital on Airport Road Abu Dhabi. The new facilities at Al Noor Hospital Airport Road have further enhanced the healthcare en-vironment with this being the nearest hospital to Al Mafraq Hospital, and additionally being at a half-way dis-tance to the centre of the city of Abu Dhabi. This facility, which opened in 2007, comprises VIP and Royal Suites. New specialised services like renal di-alysis are part of the new setup along IVF and oncology.

Further information concerning Al Noor Hospital can be obtained by vis-iting www.alnoorhospital.com

al noor hoSpItalS groUp

Al noor Hospital is committed to a continuing process of improvement in all areas of the hospital’s activities, the efficient use of resources, and the development of education and training

Dr Kassem Alom, Managing Director of Al Noor Hospital with Derick

Al Noor Hospital

firmly believes that high quality and accessible healthcare are a fundamental element of any society that strives to improve its overall quality of life

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Healthcare at its bestRAK Hospital provides the best in quality healthcare and has put a smile on many faces. Nawal, for

instance, a mother of eight-year-old Hassan Sultan had rushed her son to many hospitals following

bouts of stomach ache that trig-gered severe asthmatic attacks but no one could properly diagnose that his appendix was the culprit. The premium healthcare provider, RAK Hospital based in Ras Al Khaimah, caught onto the prob-lem and successfully treated the boy.

RAK Hospital, opened in No-vember 2007, is designed to in-corporate a comfortable premium stay coupled with sensitive patient handling by its efficient team of doctors. The facility has come to be recognised by its residents as a provider of world-class care.

“The healthcare industry is one of the world’s largest and fastest growing industries. Quite literally, the state of a nation’s healthcare is an index of its wellbeing. The rap-

id pace of development in the UAE over the past few decades has ne-cessitated a closer look at the health services available in the country. Undeniably, with every passing day, the number of people visiting or settling down in the Emirates is increasing, putting tre-mendous pressure on the existing facilities for healthcare,” said Raza Siddiqui, Executive Director, ETA

Star Healthcare.The hospital also boasts a robust

interpreter to the doctor compa-rable to the best around the world; which means that at any given time the patient will have some-one to assist with the interpreta-tion needs. The staff is proficient not only in English, Arabic and Urdu but also in French, German, Russian, Tagalog, Tamil, Sinha-

raK hoSpItal

JCI-accredited RAK Hospital delivers the finest healthcare services catering to the northern Emirates

lese and Malayalam amongst others.

RAK Hospital was awarded the prestigious Joint Commission In-ternational (JCI) accreditation within the first year of its opera-tions; an achievement registered to a select group of healthcare service providers globally, and RAK Hospital is the only hospital in the world that holds a JCI ac-creditation and SLH accredita-tion simultaneously.

“RAK Hospital has been envi-sioned to provide premium qual-ity healthcare to the local and regional community. Committed to establish a world-class facility, we had already been following most of the requirements as part of corporate culture. We could quickly and adequately meet the standards. The accreditation for-mally validated all that we stood for,” Siddiqui said.

The hospital also received the title of “Best Healing Environ-ment” in 2011 by Hospital Built Awards and Best Hospital Proj-ect Award from the Arab Invest-ment Council in 2011.

RAK Hospital goes to a great length to ensure that the patient recovery is in the best possible environment and offers a num-ber of facilities. This year the hospital, in conjunction with Swiss Art Gate — a company pro-moting UAE-Swiss cultural col-laborative initiatives, will host an art exhibition for the first time across its premises.

“At RAK Hospital we promote a relaxed atmosphere whether it is for the staff or for the patients. I cannot stress enough on the im-portance of being stress free whether as a patient, attendant or the provider in our business. Initiatives such as these really help in creating the right ambi-ence,” said Dr Arpan David, COO, RAK Hospital.

Set in the backdrop of the Jebel Jais mountain range of Ras Al Khaimah, the 140,000 square feet hospital is spread over 200,000 square feet area and boasts of 16 departments and 65 beds. The patients can get treat-ment for cardiac conditions, dia-betes, bone and joint diseases, obesity related disorders, gy-naecological conditions, dental, ophthalmology, ear nose throat and paediatric diseases.

RAK Hospital is determined to provide tertiary care to the com-munity in critical fields like car-diology, orthopaedics, neurosur-gery and laparoscopic surgery and latest services offered are: Cardiac surgery and Interven-tional Cardiology Centre (in as-sociation with Fortis-Escorts Heart Institute, India), Laparo-scopic and Bariatric Surgery Centre, Orthopaedics and Trau-matology Centre, and Neurosur-gery and Spine Centre.

RAK Hospital has been envisioned to

provide premium quality healthcare to the local and regional community

raza SiddiquiRazaSiddiqui

Patients’ rights as stipulatedbyinternationalstandardsin-cludethefollowing:

To receive healthcare that re-•spects the cultural, psycho-social, and personal values and beliefsTo choose or reject the treat-•ing doctor upon furnishing a genuine reasonTo be protected during treat-•ment from any physical, ver-bal or psychological assault To know the identity of the •physician and team respon-sible for patients’ careTo have privacy and confi-•dentiality of patients’ medi-cal records maintained at all timesTo receive from the health-•care team, in a simple under-standable manner (through a translator if needed), comprehensive information about diagnosis, proposed treatment; the reasons for any changes in health status; alternative treatments; prob-abilities of treatment success or failure; therapy advan-tages and disadvantages; possible problems related to treatment and the expected results of ignoring the treat-ment

To receive, upon discharge, written discharge notes from nurses including therapeutic plans and instructions that clar-ify how to take further care of patients’ health, etc