UAE's new medical school opens door to better health standards - but hard work starts now

Challenges include funding and availability of residency programmes, experts say

American University in Dubai is to launch a new medical school. Getty Images

A new private medical school to be launched in the UAE could significantly help to bolster health care and meet the demands of a growing population.

American University in Dubai has said it is teaming up with the prestigious University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine (Penn Medicine) to establish a school of medicine in the Emirates.

The move is aimed at helping to train doctors locally, while working with UAE hospitals and generally improving health care in the Emirates and across the region. Penn also aims to bring its pioneering treatments such as those using artificial intelligence and simulations to the country.

Demand for healthcare services in the UAE is growing, as the population increases. Victor Besa / The National

Meeting demands of population growth

Dr Senthil Nathan, managing director and co-founder Edu Alliance Ltd, said it was not an easy project to deliver but there is “no question” the UAE and the region need several world-class medical schools to meet the emerging needs of the growing - and maturing - population.

He said, to make the project a success, it would be necessary to provide generous scholarships to attract the best talent from across the region and the provision of a world-class teaching hospital that could be owned or closely-linked to the university. He said endowments from the public and private sector would be important in making a school such as this a reality.

“Such a world-class medical school must be viewed as a long-term investment to transform the healthcare provisions of the country and the region,” he said.

“However, if the school and its programmes are analysed for business key performance indicators in isolation, that will not lead to sustainable success.”

It was not announced when the school is expected to start accepting students – thought to be several years away - but AUD said the groundwork on the curriculum, faculty and admissions has begun.

“This approach is indeed prudent and necessary given the time, effort and resources needed to overcome these challenges, although Dubai and the UAE are well known for fast-track infrastructure projects,” said Dr Nathan.

American University of Dubai and University of Pennsylvania teamed up to launch the project. Antonie Robertson / The National

How many medical professionals work in the UAE?

Dr Glen Gaulton, deputy dean and director of the centre for global health at Penn Medicine, last week said it is important to increase the number of doctors trained in the UAE, given the growing population and reliance on overseas medics, and that the school aims to do this.

“That breeds a continuance of excellence [and will have a] dramatic effect on improving health care," he said.

Currently, there are eight universities in the UAE offering medical degrees or post-graduate programmes, according to Allocation Assist.

While there are other third-level institutions offering a medical education in the UAE, the scale of the AUD project represents a significant difference as it follows the US model where students first take an undergraduate degree before then enrolling into the proposed AUD school.

While current data is not readily available on how many medics in the UAE are trained here or abroad, the numbers working here are growing.

The Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre (FCSC) said the number of physicians working in the public and private sectors in the UAE increased to 26,151 by the end of 2020, compared to 12,894 in 2010, a rise of 104 per cent.

The number of dentists increased to 6,811 compared to 3,042, an increase of 124 per cent, and the number of nurses increased to 56,133 from 23,363 during the same reporting period, a rise of 140 per cent.

Most are thought to be foreign-trained.

More work to be done

Health experts in the UAE said the proposed school would add value to the overall medical profession in the country but further work on residency programmes once students graduated were important to keep them in the country.

“What we really need to understand is when you graduate physicians from medical school, they are just starting physicians,” said Dr Anwar Sallam, clinical adviser at Burjeel Holdings.

“They cannot even work as a family physician, so they need to pursue something after their medical school.

“We need medical schools of high calibre to graduate medical students, then address the needs of the country by establishing residency programmes and fellowships.”

Dr Sallam also outlined how the medical landscape was different in the UAE, pointing to the cost of living and medical malpractice laws.

Medical malpractice can be a criminal offence in the UAE if gross medical error is proven, as decided by the medical liability committee. Penalties include a maximum two-year prison term and fines of up to Dh500,000.

“The whole world is now like a global village, so people hear about medical cases, lawsuits and litigations which is again negatively affecting the ability to attract doctors,” said Dr Sallam. “Doctors are always looking over their shoulders, which can be very uncomfortable.”

Dr Sallam said the “number one” consideration for doctors looking to move here is the UAE’s very strict licensing body.

“This can be a game-stopper for many people. They’ve been living in their country holding the title of a consultant, which means a lot for any physician, so then they get really frustrated and shocked when they hear the law here is not going to grant them the consultant title.”

Dr Oman Najim, who is chairman and managing director of behavioural science company BeeHiveX and has previously served as a senior official for Abu Dhabi's Department of Health, spoke of the global challenges of building a sustainable healthcare sector to support ageing populations.

"Attracting talent is a complex endeavor that is not simply based on a higher salary or incentive package but also need to provide other elements that talents and their families seek," he said.

"That noted, the region and UAE in particular has taken huge strides to not only attract the right high quality talent to serve its aspirations but also establishing training programme and degrees to develop its own sustainable source, like UAE university, Khalifa University, Mohammed Bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences and others."

What is clear is that, as more people move to the UAE and stay here, the population is expected to age. A report published by Dubai Health Authority in 2017 indicated an expected rise in the proportion of the elderly in the UAE from 6 per cent to 29 per cent by 2050.

The World Health Organisation says the global population of those 60 and older is expected to double by 2050 and triple by 2100, with huge implications for health care.

Dr Shanila Laiju, group chief executive of UAE-based private health-care provider Medcare Hospitals and Medical Centres said training more doctors locally means they will be more in tune with patient needs.

“As the population continues to grow, there is an ever-increasing necessity for healthcare services, particularly in the domains of chronic illnesses and age-related therapies,” she said.

“By preparing physicians locally, the programme ensures that they are knowledgeable about the specific health needs and cultural contexts of the region.”