News that Abu Dhabi’s first medical university is likely to open its doors as early as next year is a welcome move that will contribute to the emirate’s – and country’s – drive towards a knowledge economy. The announcement is doubly significant as it was made on the anniversary of the passing of Sheikh Zayed, the Founding Father of the UAE, who had considered educational and healthcare infrastructure as cornerstones of nation-building. As Dr Mounir Soliman, assistant vice-chancellor at the University of California at San Diego, pointed out, the facility will give Abu Dhabi the “opportunity to transform health care and to build on science and research”.
This newspaper has previously highlighted the need to educate and train a new generation of Emirati doctors and nurses to cope with ever-increasing healthcare demands, but a lack of facilities has hampered this intention.
Explaining this issue, Fatima Al Dhaheri, a physician from Al Ain, earlier told The National that since most nursing graduates are female, they won’t consider going abroad for training. It is likely that the new university will motivate more Emiratis to study medicine and nursing.
Another potential benefit of having a medical university is that locally-trained Emirati doctors are more likely to stay here, or to return after postgraduate study or work experience abroad. They will, in turn, contribute to making the country a hub for medical tourism, which could create thousands of jobs and bring more money into the economy.
This country’s ambitious plans require large-scale investment. This project illustrates how that investment does not always need to come from Government. Certainly there is also space for partnership between the public and private sectors, in which major projects could be built as joint ventures between Government and private companies.
