From the Editors: Dubai raises the bar for health care

DUBAI RAISES THE BAR FOR HEALTH CARE: The Dubai Academic Health Corporation’s sharp focus in anchoring its strategic plan around the ‘Patient First’ ethos is heartening. It demonstrates the authorities’ commitment to reimagine the patient journey across the continuum of care. That SMART measures have been put into place to monitor progress is also to be welcomed as it includes everything from the patient safety index and patient trust to workforce culture and capacity and availability of sub-specialty care. UAE today is a name to reckon with on the global map of health care. [COMMENT BY: Sharmila Dhal, UAE Editor]

JAW-JAW IS BETTER THAN WAR-WAR: The UN Security Council will meet today for to discuss simmering tensions as Russia engages in a troop-buildup with Ukraine. The West fears Russia is planning an imminent invasion of its smaller neighbour, though Moscow has dismissed such concerns. The meeting couldn’t have come sooner, as the issue is much more than just Russian and Ukraine. It indirectly pits the world’s only hyperpower, the United States, against Russia, which is, militarily at least, still a superpower. Going by the angry response of Russia’s deputy UN ambassador to the meeting called at the request of the US, Moscow doesn’t even think this is an issue worth discussing. But, at this stage, anything that enables dialogue is better than nothing. Like Winston Churchill famously said, jaw-jaw is better than war-war.[COMMENT BY: Omar Shariff, International Editor]

ENGLAND MUST IMPROVE AHEAD OF NEXT SERIES: West Indies secured the Twenty20 series against England 3-2 after winning the deciding match by 17 runs in Barbados. Jason Holder stole the show by taking four wickets from the final four balls to seal the victory and the series for the home side. England had needed 20 runs from the final six balls but it proved too big a task for the tourists who lost Sam Billings, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid and Saqib Mahmood in that last over. It was a fascinating series with plenty of drama and the West Indies will be feeling much better about themselves following their drab showing at the T20 World Cup last year. As for England, they will be returning to the Caribbean in March for a three-Test series and will want to make sure they improve massively following the hammering they took by Australia in the Ashes.[COMMENT BY: Imran Malik, Assistant Editor ]

SPOTIFY’S MOVE THE RESPONSIBLE THING TO DO: Spotify’s stand-off with musicians over the Joe Rogan podcast finally saw the audio streaming giant and the host himself change their stance over the spread of COVID-19 misinformation. While Spotify stated it would ‘start guiding listeners of podcasts discussing COVID-19 to more information about the pandemic’, Rogan also posted a 10-minute video on Instagram admitting he doesn’t “always get it right,”, while lauding the platform’s move to add a disclaimer. The controversy surrounding his Spotify podcast, ‘The Joe Rogan Experience’ reached a fever pitch last week when Neil Young said he would remove his music from Spotify due to COVID-19 misinformation on Rogan’s podcast. Singer Joni Mitchell and Bruce Springsteen guitarist Nils Lofgren followed suit in solidarity with Young. Spotify’s change of policy comes at a time when it’s imperative that companies are held accountable over the spread of misinformation. [COMMENT BY: Bindu Rai, Entertainment Editor]