wam.ae – The Dubai Health Authority met with private sector organizations, Dubai Healthcare City Authority (DHCA) and Dubai Tourism and Commerce Marketing to discuss and develop a unified medical tourism initiative for the Emirate. Qadhi Saeed Al Murooshid, director-general of the Dubai Health Authority, said, “In line with the instructions of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai and HH Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, Dubai is keen to foster the medical tourism sector and implement several new initiatives to boost medical tourism in cooperation with other government departments, the DHCA and the private healthcare sector. We strongly believe that the private sector plays a key role in this, and thus we will work with the sector and key relevant government departments, airlines and tourism companies to ensure we develop successful medical tourism initiatives for Dubai. “The Emirate offers internationally accredited state-of-the-art healthcare facilities, has highly qualified healthcare professionals and an efficient regulatory system that ensures safe and quality healthcare as well as promotes investment in the health sector.” Laila Al Jassmi, CEO of Health Policy and Strategy Sector, said, “Providing a world-class integrated health system and promoting Dubai as a globally recognized destination for healthcare is in line with the vision of the Dubai Health Strategy 2011-2013. “There are several factors that make Dubai a destination of choice for medical tourism. Dubai has visitors from across the globe coming here for business, exhibitions and conferences, shopping and entertainment or on their annual family holiday. Dubai is well poised to address the healthcare needs of this market as we satisfy the key criteria for healthcare that they’re looking for – large number of highly qualified medical professionals, strong private sector health infrastructure, ease of access and the added advantage of multi-lingual skills, given Dubai’s diversity. “Dubai has over 4,750 doctors/physicians speaking over 40 languages. We have amongst the best tourism infrastructure in the world, and we are seeing tourism numbers growing over 10 percent year on year. Dubai has the highest hotel occupancy in the world with the highest revenue per available room. We believe we also have the clinical expertise for certain services that can be further marketed to tourists in Dubai.” In terms of the medical services that Dubai has to offer, Al Jassmi said, “Dubai has a number of leading world-class health facilities that are well equipped for medical tourism. Services could range from cardiac surgeries, such as open heart surgeries and catherization procedures, minimally invasive cardiac procedures for children with congenital heart defects, knee replacement surgeries, reconstructive surgeries for injuries and burns, LASIK procedures, as well as aesthetic, cosmetic and dental procedures along with wellness packages and alternative medicine.” Al Jasmi added that Dubai has internationally accredited hospitals and several renowned specialty centers such the Thalassemia Centre, The Dubai Cord Blood and Research Center, Dubai Gynecology and Fertility Centre, Dubai Genetics Centre, and so on,  while the Private Hospitals and Clinics have various centers of excellence for a number of specialties which are already catering to medical tourists. She added that Dubai is already a known destination for medical tourism and over the next years the authority expects to see a rise in the number of patients from GCC countries, Middle East North Africa region (MENA), South Asia, Western Europe, Baltic States, Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries and parts of Africa. Al Jassmi added, “In 2011, Dubai welcomed more than 9.3 million hotel guests, and tourist arrivals are only expected to grow. Health tourism in the city is expected to generate Dhs6.1bn by the end of 2012. Dubai’s private sector investment in the healthcare sector has also surged 12 percent to $8 billion in 2010-11.These figures reconfirm the Emirate’s growing demand as a medical tourism destination. “Dubai is already known to be one of the top tourism destinations in the world. Supportive infrastructure for medical tourism exists such as airlines network, hotels, shopping centers and festivals. Moreover, the multicultural social fabric and the absence of language barriers give an opportunity for the growth of this sector. The DHA is further building its healthcare capabilities, policies and regulations to ensure that Dubai enjoys the leading position as a healthcare destination on the global medical tourism map.”