Five new agencies will replace Dubai's healthcare regulatory body
Five new health agencies will replace Dubai's Department of Health and Medical Services (Dohms) by the end of 2012.
The new agencies are Dubai Medical Regulatory Agency, Dubai Hospitals Agency, Dubai Primary Care Agency, Dubai Ambulance Agency and the Shared Services Agency.
The Dubai Medical Regulatory Authority (DMRA) will set standards and regulate the public and private healthcare sectors. Dubai Hospitals Agency will run the government hospitals while Dubai Primary Care Agency will take care of government clinics and primary healthcare centres.
Dubai Ambulance Agency will take over the existing Unified Ambulance Services while Shared Services Agency will cover IT and other services.
The move is in line with the strategic plan laid out by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, last April.
In a speech mapping out his vision for Dubai, he spoke about elevating the quality of healthcare services and the well-being of the population.
"This will be achieved by improving governance of the healthcare sector; improving healthcare planning; ensuring access to health insurance; encouraging private hospitals to gain international accreditation; developing licensing standards for medical staff; and focusing on health awareness to improve public attitudes towards health."
Two months later, Shaikh Mohammad created Dubai Health Authority (DHA) to reach these goals.
Qadi Saeed Al Murooshid, director-general, DHA, says, "DHA was created to establish an authority to differentiate between regulatory and service provider.
"We need to have one common platform for service provision, to improve healthcare services for the community and create standards, improve health promotion, preventive and curative care and ensure hospitals adopt the best practices.
"The new agencies will function under the umbrella of DHA. They will be independent and have their own budgets and policies. The only role the DHA and Executive Council will have is of appointing CEOs to each agency.
