Thumbay University Hospital launches 24-hour ‘DRIVE-THRU Pharmacy’ to enable social distancing
Thumbay University Hospital, the largest private academic hospital in the region located at Thumbay Medicity, Al Jurf, Ajman, has launched 24-hour drive-through pharmacy service at the hospital premises, enabling patients and customers to collect their medication without stepping out of their cars. The move comes as part of the hospital’s series of measures to improve customer convenience and safety, in the wake of the social distancing and hygiene regulations mandated by the UAE authorities and WHO due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Customers can drive in and place their orders or present their prescriptions and collect the medications without having to physically enter the pharmacy, and by maintaining the stipulated social distance with the pharmacy staff handling their request. Direction signage have been installed at the hospital entrance and at other relevant places, ensuring that people have no difficulties accessing the drive-through service.
“Pharmacies play a vital role in the healthcare system, providing critical services to the public, especially in times like these when the world is dealing with a pandemic. It is important for Thumbay University Hospital to ensure the safe and continuous functioning of our pharmacy. By launching drive-through service, we intend to minimize risks for our staff as well as patients and customers, through infection prevention and social distancing measures. This also ensures round-the-clock availability of medicines and other pharmacy essentials,” said Dr. Mohammad Faisal, the COO of Thumbay University Hospital.
Moreover, the hospital has also enabled chronic medication refill for insurance patients by just making a phone call to 054-9955415. “We want to assure our patients that they will always have easy access to enough chronic medications including cardiac medications, diabetic medications or any potentially important medication that they need on a routine basis. Patients can get their medicines at home through the home delivery of medicines being done by Thumbay University Hospitalpharmacy,” said Dr. Mohammad Faisal.
Elaborating on the efforts of the Thumbay Pharmacy network to ensure the safety of its staff and customers, Ravi K Gannavarapu, General Manager of the Retail Division of Thumbay Group said, “All Thumbay Pharmacies in the UAE are taking active steps to facilitate social distancing and hygiene, thereby reducing risks of exposure. All our pharmacy outlets frequently clean and disinfect customer service counters, waiting areas and customer contact areas. Thumbay Pharmacy’s drive-through service at Thumbay University Hospital is the latest step in this direction.”
Thumbay University Hospital has a robotic pharmacy with automated robotic technology to prepare and dispense medicines. This smart pharmacy, part of the Thumbay Pharmacy network, ensures zero dispensing errors and achieves considerable reduction in waiting times. Spread across 4700 sq. ft. area, it is equipped with robotic and pneumatic tube system, and has been designed for high density storage up to 42,000 units and hassle-free retrieval of medications. It is equipped with medication safety bar-code scanning, ensuring that the medications and strengths are correct during both the carousel stocking and dispensing process.
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STT hike in F&O aimed at curbing speculative trade, protect small investors: Sitharaman
New Delhi (PTI): Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said the increase in STT in F&O is aimed at curbing high-risk speculative trade and discouraging gullible investors who were losing huge amounts of money in the derivatives market.
The Budget has proposed an increase in the Securities Transaction Tax (STT) on futures contracts to 0.05 per cent from 0.02 per cent.
STT on options premium and exercise of options are proposed to be raised to 0.15 per cent from the present rate of 0.1 per cent and 0.125 per cent, respectively.
Addressing a post-budget conference, Sitharaman said the government is not against derivative trade, but wants small investors, who are facing huge losses, to stay away from the speculative F&O market.
"This nominal increase is purely aimed at speculation, only to deter them, to discourage them. We are not against it (F&O trade), but small investors are facing losses, so how can we be quiet, so it (STT hike on F&O) is to deter such investments," Sitharaman said.
According to studies by Sebi, over 90 per cent of retail investors' trades in the F&O segment lead to losses, and the capital markets regulator has also taken steps to reduce volumes in the past.
Market regulator Sebi has also cautioned small and retail investors against trading in the F&O segment, underscoring the need for responsible investing.
Addressing questions on the intention behind the STT hike, Revenue Secretary Arvind Shrivastava said it has been done to discourage speculative tendencies and handle systemic risk in the derivatives market.
"The government's intention is to discourage speculative tendencies, and the increase in rate is essentially in that direction. So, it is meant to essentially handle the systemic risk in derivative markets," he added.
Shrivastava said even after this increase, the rates of STT will remain modest compared to the volume of the transactions that are happening.
The hike in STT is aimed squarely at high-volume derivative trading, rather than the cash equity market, and is expected to meaningfully increase transaction costs for active and short-term trading strategies.
Sitharaman further said the highest-ever capital expenditure of Rs 12.22 lakh crore announced for 2026-27 works out to be 4.4 per cent of GDP.
The capital expenditure for FY27 is 10 per cent higher than the Rs 11.11 lakh crore budgeted capex announced in FY26.
"We have announced that Rs 12.22 lakh crore is coming through public expenditure. This time it is 4.4 per cent of GDP, which is the highest at least in the last 10 years, it could even be the highest if you were to take data from earlier periods," Sitharaman said.
The capital expenditure was 2.5 per cent of GDP in 2021-22 and around 4 per cent of GDP in 2024-25. The government's capital expenditure was Rs 2.35 lakh crore in 2015-16.
She further said that the 4.3 per cent fiscal deficit target for FY27 is "realistic and responsible". The Budget has proposed to lower the fiscal deficit to 4.3 per cent in FY27, from 4.4 per cent in FY26.
Asked about the budget not making any big announcement for poll-bound states, Sitharaman said there are various announcements, including industrial corridors across the eastern and western parts of India. "So there is enough to cover election states and all other states," she said.
