Medstar to invest $100 million for day surgery centres in the UAE, Arabian Gulf

Dubai-based Medstar has become the latest healthcare company to expand in the region as confidence in the sector grows.

The company, which is backed by healthcare professionals from the UAE as well as abroad, will invest US$100 million over the next three years to open day surgery centres in the UAE and the Arabian Gulf. It opened its first day surgery centre in Dubai two months ago.

“There is a gap in the day surgery segment and it reduces costs by 25 to 30 per cent per procedure compared to that in a hospital set-up,” said Dr Sajid Burud, the managing director of Medstar Healthcare.

“With the increasing population in Dubai, hospitals and medical services will be in demand.”

Dubai’s population has grown to 2.45 million this year from 2.33 million a year ago, according to Dubai Statistics Center. The introduction of mandatory health insurance in Dubai has also created more demand.

Opened with 10 full-time physicians carrying out procedures such as cosmetic surgeries and endoscopies, the Dubai centre could have 18 doctors by the end of the month.

With two operation theatres and one for minor procedures, the Dubai Medstar facility has 13 beds.

Medstar also expects to open a facility in Sharjah before the end of the year.

Smaller clinics and pharmacies have become the latest growth drivers with hospital chains such as NMC and Al Noor Hospitals entering into a series of deals last year.

Abu Dhabi’s Al Noor Hospitals acquired Rochester Wellness, which provides rehabilitation therapy at homes and two facilities in Dubai and Muscat. Earlier in the year, NMC Health acquired ProVita International Medical Center facilities in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain for $160.6m. NMC also acquired Dr Sunny Healthcare Group – a chain of six medical centres and three pharmacies in Sharjah for $64m.

The developer Meraas this week announced that it will set up its first healthcare project, Valiant Clinic at Dubai’s City Walk. It will be managed by US-based Houston Methodist Global Health Care Services.

The outpatient clinic will focus on diagnostic and wellness care such as cardiology, endocrinology, internal medicine, pulmonology and women’s health.

The Middle East and North Africa’s total healthcare spending is estimated to have been $125 billion last year, according to Al Masah Capital data, a Dubai-based alternative-investment management firm. Government spending is estimated to account for 64 per cent – or $80bn – of the total market, with private sector healthcare spending making up the rest.

The role of the private sector is expected to increase in the Mena market, according to Al Masah Capital. The investment firm forecasts that the private-sector healthcare market will be worth $61bn in 2020, more than double its size in 2011.

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Pox that threatens the Middle East's native species

Camelpox

Caused by a virus related to the one that causes human smallpox, camelpox typically causes fever, swelling of lymph nodes and skin lesions in camels aged over three, but the animal usually recovers after a month or so. Younger animals may develop a more acute form that causes internal lesions and diarrhoea, and is often fatal, especially when secondary infections result. It is found across the Middle East as well as in parts of Asia, Africa, Russia and India.

Falconpox

Falconpox can cause a variety of types of lesions, which can affect, for example, the eyelids, feet and the areas above and below the beak. It is a problem among captive falcons and is one of many types of avian pox or avipox diseases that together affect dozens of bird species across the world. Among the other forms are pigeonpox, turkeypox, starlingpox and canarypox. Avipox viruses are spread by mosquitoes and direct bird-to-bird contact.

Houbarapox

Houbarapox is, like falconpox, one of the many forms of avipox diseases. It exists in various forms, with a type that causes skin lesions being least likely to result in death. Other forms cause more severe lesions, including internal lesions, and are more likely to kill the bird, often because secondary infections develop. This summer the CVRL reported an outbreak of pox in houbaras after rains in spring led to an increase in mosquito numbers.

UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions