Private hospitals told to report deaths electronically

Dubai: Deaths occurring in private hospitals now have to be reported electronically and immediately to the emirate's health authority, in a bid to catch and investigate medical mistakes as soon as they occur.

Apart from the death notification, the Dubai Department of Health and Medical Services (Dohms) also require private hospitals and clinics to submit the patient's cause of death, as well as his or her medical and treatment records. Private medical centres have till March 1 to comply.

Dr Ramadan Ebrahim, head of the Clinical Governance Office at Dohms, told Gulf News the move was to ensure a high standard of care in the private sector.

"We are not doubting the expertise of the private sector, saying that they are killing patients. But we just want to make sure that things are running well," he said.

He said the Mortality Screening Form would help Dohms detect and investigate any medical mistakes associated with the death without any delays, including having to wait for an official complaint from family members and medical files to be delivered manually.

Previously, private hospitals and clinics have had to report any death and its cause manually, which can take a few days. Investigating possible medical malpractice and negligence cases also depended on a family member filing a complaint with Dohms or from press reports.