Abu Dhabi health summit puts early disease prediction in focus

Abu Dhabi: 4.6 billion people which accounts for half of Humanity, still lack access to essential health services and global funding for health is under pressure, according to Sheikh Shakhboot Bin Nahyan Al Nahyan, Minister of State, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, UAE.

“The question before us is not whether innovation works, but whether we can deliver at a scale to everyone and above” he said in his keynote speech at the Abu Dhabi Future Health Summit.

He addressed that UAE has embraced its responsibility as a national mission, a commitment shaped by the vision of the late His Highness Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan and carried forward under the leadership of H. H Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of UAE.

The event is expected to play the bridge connecting scientific breakthroughs with all of humanity through future health and Abu Dhabi blueprints, 

As we walk into the alleys of the future health summit, what caught the eye of most visitors are the Augmented reality experience at display, added Sheikh Shakhboot as he spoke of how UAE is sharing their learnings with any health system that benefits from it.

A hands-on glimpse into the future of health

Visitors were invited to put on the gear to play games. While most exhibitors had major announcements to make, some focused on simpler offerings, inviting visitors to have their blood tested using only their insurance card or to discover their strengths through a hanging challenge, a coordination challenge or even a balance challenge.

Francis Palabrica, a nurse by profession, noted that the activity required significant mind-body coordination to succeed. “The last one was your balance, which is your moving your upper and lower extremities.”

“So, this experience was so nice, and this requires lots of mind coordination with the proper body movement,” he added.

The activity only serves as a small version of the argument being made at the Abu Dhabi Future Health Summit, which runs from 20 to 22 October at ADNEC Centre Abu Dhabi. Its theme, “To Sense is to Predict”, describes a global shift from reactive models of care towards earlier prediction, prevention and personalised intervention.

The premise is simple to state and hard to deliver: if advances in AI, genomics, diagnostics and health data can reveal risk early enough, health systems can stop waiting for people to fall ill.

The venue was swamped with people of different titles from the health industry, ranging from nurses to specialists, and even NGOs and universities displaying their recent research.  

Across earlier gatherings, Abu Dhabi has convened more than 500 speakers from nearly 100 countries and welcomed more than 25,000 participants.

The summit comes as Abu Dhabi continues to advance what it describes as an integrated, prevention-led health ecosystem. Predicting illness is easier to demonstrate on a stage than to make routine in a clinic.