Dubai: Cleaner indoor air, plenty of sunshine and a paperless medical diagnostic system are some of the features of the first certified green building for a medical centre that was inaugurated in Jebel Ali Free Zone on Wednesday.
The MedHealth Medical Centre is the first medical centre to implement the Green Building 2007 directive by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
The directive is in line with Dubai Strategic Plan 2015.
The Centre, a joint partnership between MedHealth and Belhoul Life Care, was officially opened in the presence of Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation, and Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline and Group.
The Centre has a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold Rated certification. LEED is an internationally recognised green building certification system developed by the US Green Building Council (USGBC). Ahmad Hussain, chief executive office of the Centre told Gulf News that the LEED Gold certification is based on several green design and construction features.
He said that the feature include well insulated walls, reduced water consumption, solar energy sources, and better ventilation, among others.
Of the location, he said that the free zone has a high concentration of industrial, manufacturing and maritime companies. “Employees within the free zone as well as offshore — who need approval to leave the free zone area — will benefit from the location,” he said.
Hussain explained that the centre is equipped to cater to the medical needs which are high due to occupational accidents.
Sustainable buildings provide the best environment for patient care, according to Dr Jayashankar MT, medical director of the Centre, speaking to Gulf News on how sustainability impacts patient outcome.
He said, “Various studies point out that creating the right environment — better air quality, good ventilation and ambience, can add to the overall wellbeing of the patient.”
He added that indirectly natural light and good ventilation adds to the sensorial experience positively impacting a patient’s mood, sleep quality and [hospital] experience.
The Centre will cater to 120 in-patients and up to 80 out-patients. The inauguration was also attended by Salma Hareb, CEO of Economic Zones World and Jafza and officials from Jafza and Dubai Ports World, Tarakhees, Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) and The Fire Department.
