Heart and lung centre of excellence to open in Dubai
Canadian Speciality Hosptial in Dubai to be regional hub for centre of excellence
This report was first published in gulfnews.com and has been posted here without any alterations or editing. To read the original report, CLICK HERE
Dubai: Dubai will soon have the first of its kind heart and lung Centre of Excellence, with cutting-edge technology in the private sector where patients will have the possibility of affordable heart and lung transplants.
Phased expansion
Meitra Care Network (MCN) from India, which is an initiative by the UAE-based conglomerate, KEF Healthcare, announced its partnership with Canadian Specialist Hospital (CSH) to launch this centre. The Centre for Excellence will follow a phased augmentation.
Dr KR Balakrishnan, world-renowned expert cardiothoracic surgeon who runs Asia’s most prolific heart and lung transplant programmes in India, will play a key role in this partnership. Dr Balakrishnan is an acknowledged expert in cardiothoracic surgery who has mastered evidence-based approach to health care practices.
Robotics and spinal surgery to be introduced in Phase 2
The centre will have a full spectrum of services, which will be launched in a phased manner. In the first phase, the centre will offer advanced interventional cardiology procedures and electro physiology department. A full-time team from Meitra will also be located at the CSH. In the second phase, the Centre will have a full-fledged cardiac sciences department that will offer all heart-related surgical procedures.
In the second phase, the project will expand to include centres of excellence in Orthopaedics and Robotics surgery. This will also include Advanced Neuroscience department, which will also have a facility for Spine surgeries.
Mechanical heart transplants a definite possibility
Dr Balakrishnan told Gulf News, “We intend to have heart transplants in the subsequent phases, but will begin with artificial and mechanical heart transplants first, to bring relief to patients with congenital heart disease in UAE and the region.”
In order to be a regional hub, the centre of excellence will deploy advanced digital technology will facilitate diversified medical interventions across tele-consultation, telemedicine to diagnosis, critical care to surgical support and advisory.
Cutting edge technology at affordable costs
Commenting on this project, Mohammad Rashid Al Falasi, Chairman of CSH said, “This is a groundbreaking collaboration, and with MCN, the pioneering disruptive medical and health care ecosystem, we will be able to enhance patient-centric care connecting with multiple specialist health care experts and entities from around the world. We will be offering the full spectrum of heart and vascular care services to patients that will complement Dubai’s reputation as a regional health care and medical tourism hub.
He added. “CSH is a reputable acute-cum-critical care hospital catering to the tertiary health care needs of the UAE and the region. Our goal with this collaboration is to create an ever-expanding health care ecosystem, bringing patients and doctors, as well as primary, secondary, tertiary and critical care service providers, under one integrated system. This will reduce downtime and wastage of resources, and result in better utilisation of doctors, laboratories, operation theatres, and health care facilities — to offer the best health care services at an affordable price.”
The collaboration will address a critical gap in health care delivery.
Faizal Kottikollon, the founder and chairman of KEF holdings and the Calicut-based Meitra hospital and MCN said, “We believe MCN has the potential to address the critical gap in collaborative health care supported by technology, and our debut in Dubai with CSH is a milestone in bringing quality global health care to patients in Dubai and the UAE.”
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Bombay HC to form high-powered committee on Mumbai air pollution
Mumbai (PTI): The Bombay High Court on Thursday said it would form a high-powered committee to oversee the compliance of measures to tackle air pollution in the Mumbai region, noting that the efforts taken so far by state and civic authorities are insufficient.
It was not criticizing anyone but wanted to ensure that "people should live in pure air," said a division bench led by Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar.
The HC had in October 2023 taken suo motu cognizance of the rising pollution in the metropolis "which was ranging between good, satisfactory, moderate poor, very poor and severe", the bench noted.
Directions were issued by the court on November 6, 2023, and suggestions were made for short-term, mid-term and long-term measures.
Since then, the HC has made observations expressing dissatisfaction about the steps taken by the Mumbai and Navi Mumbai civic bodies, the judges said.
The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) is simply "sailing on its affidavits," but the steps purportedly taken by it were not sufficient, the court stated.
Air pollution in Mumbai has not decreased, in fact it was reported to be very severe in December, said the judges.
"We have apprised ourselves of the previous orders, and find that compliances so far made by (municipal) corporations and MPCB are not sufficient and satisfactory," the court said.
The authorities might have taken serious steps but their results were not visible, it added.
The court expressed inability to examine all the affidavits filed by the municipal corporations and MPCB and reports submitted by an expert committee (formed in 2023), citing the "rising number of dockets and limited hours and time."
After hearing all the parties at length, the high court decided to form a high-powered committee led by a former Supreme Court judge to monitor the compliance of measures to tackle air pollution in Mumbai and the surrounding areas.
The committee should meet on a daily basis, the court said, adding that its members should be provided necessary facilities.
The bench also referred to a suggestion that the citizens affected by pollution should be compensated.
The lawyer for the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation said there are existing statutory bodies to look into this aspect.
"Maybe there are statutory bodies formed in Maharashtra, but then we have not come across any suggestion or action taken by such a body in the present proceedings..." the court said, adding that it was inclined to give "some powers" to the committee.
The court is expected to finalize the names of the committee members in its written order.
