There is no doubt that the health service in the UAE needs a lot of improvement. Health reforms thus should be a priority, similar to what the federal and local governments have been doing with the education sector.
At Tuesday's session, members of the Federal National Council (FNC) demanded wide-ranging reforms of the health care system in the northern emirates.
Obviously, Abu Dhabi and Dubai have come a long way in upgrading the system with state-of-the-art institutions and rigorous training for health care staff.
Nevertheless, thousands of people are still being sent abroad for treatment — the majority of them at the state's expense.
The FNC also criticised the Ministry of Health for "not paying enough attention" to chronic diseases. A parliamentary report said the UAE "ranked second highest worldwide for diabetes prevalence, while 37 per cent of Emiratis are suffering from high blood pressure, which causes major heart diseases and death among 31 per cent of the patients".
The numbers alone should prompt health officials to take an urgent and thorough look at the level of services provided by the national health system and address its shortcomings.
A modern and rapidly developing country like the UAE deserves much more than dilapidated hospitals and less than acceptable health services.
