Ministry of Health wins two prestigious awards
DUBAI, (Pakistan Point News - 17th Jan, 2021) The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) has won two prestigious awards at the HIMSS-Elsevier Digital Healthcare Award middle East 2020, which is organised by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS).
In the Outstanding ICT Innovation category, MoHAP came first through the ‘Newborn Hearing Screening’ project, which aims to deploy a universal and automated newborn hearing screening in all MoHAP maternity hospitals. The innovative system has been integrated with the Electronic Medical Record ‘Wareed’, while the ministry’s Pharmacy Outpatient Automation project was among the finalists for the same category.
The Ministry’s Stroke Golden Hour project was named the winner in the Outstanding ICT Achievement category. The project aims to standardise the clinical practices for patients with acute ischemic stroke (AIS) according to international standards and to reduce the door-to-needle time (DTN), thus reducing the morbidity and mortality resulting from stroke.
Dr. Youssif Al Serkal, Director-General of the Emirates Health Services Corporation, highlighted the importance of this international recognition in a global forum that brings together major healthcare institutions in the world, something that clearly reflects the UAE's outstanding capabilities in the healthcare sector and helps strengthen the country’s status in the international health arena.
He asserted that the ministry is moving steadily towards further reinforcing the capabilities of the healthcare sector and achieving sustainability in health services through the development of medical policies, procedures, and protocols, thereby becoming among the world’s top innovative countries.
Al Serkal stressed that these efforts reflect MoHAP’s commitment to making a paradigm shift in its health services using state-of-the-art digital health standards and Artificial Intelligence (AI), enhancing the operational efficiency, improving patient experience, and attracting latest systems and smart solutions in the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment.
Concluding his remarks, Al Serkal shed light on the Ibrahim bin Hamad Obaidullah Hospital’s winning of the Diamond Award from the World Stroke Organisation (WSO), as the UAE's and GCC's first hospital to win this prestigious award, describing this recognition as a new testament to the UAE’s healthcare system efficiency.
Dr. Kalthoum Al Baloushi, Director of MoHAP’s Hospitals Administration, said that this international recognition underlines the efficiency of MoHAP’s projects in healthcare technology and the outstanding hospitals management in the field of clinical practices automation.
"The Newborn Hearing Screening project is being used in all MoHAP maternity hospitals after it has been integrated with the existing Electronic Medical Record (Wareed)," she noted. Al Baloushi affirmed that early detection and relevant medical interventions are crucial to minimising the impact of hearing loss on a child's development.