Middle East's foremost orthopaedics surgeon partners with UAE hospital group in new centre of excellence for joint surgery

It will become a new centre of excellence for orthopaedics in the Middle East, offering advanced surgeries including joint replacement to patients from across the region.

The hospital and Centre also signed a partnership agreement at Arab Health 2013 with HELIOS ENDO-Klinik Hamburg and announced their knowledge-sharing and training partnership.

HELIOS ENDO-Klinik Hamburg is a specialised clinic for bone, joint, and spinal surgery, which has achieved a worldwide reputation for outstanding competence in the treatment of diseases of the locomotor system. The two centres will collaborate on research, academic papers and fellowships for trainee doctors.

Today's launch ceremony was held under the auspices of Dubai Health Authority and was attended by Dr Ramadan Ibrahim, Director of Health Regulation, DHA. Other attendees included Guest of Honour, Mrs. Pruefer-Storcks, Hamburg Senator for Health; Dr Shamsheer Vayalil, Managing Director, Burjeel Hospitals; Dr Samih Tarabichi, Medical Director, Burjeel Hospital for Special Surgery and Tarabichi's Centre of Joint Surgery; Mrs. Sibylle Stauch-Eckmann, Managing Director, HELIOS ENDO-Klinik Hamburg; and Dr Wolfgang Klauser, MD and Vice Medical Director, HELIOS ENDO-Klinik Hamburg.

Burjeel Hospital for Special Surgery and Tarabichi's Centre of Joint Surgery will open with a specialist team of several orthopaedic doctors led by Dr Tarabichi who, for the last 17 years, has performed more than 8,000 knee and joint replacement surgeries to patients from across the Gulf and beyond. The 35-bed hospital on the Sheikh Zayed Road will be fitted with three operating theatres designed to perform 2,500 orthopaedics procedures annually and with state-of-the-art investigative equipment including advanced MRI scans.

Speaking at the announcement ceremony, guest of honour Mrs. Pruefer-Storcks, Hamburg Senator for Health, said, "We are pleased to see this partnership between the UAE and Germany, which will strengthen the links between our two countries in the vital field of healthcare. Today's announcement is particularly significant as it marks the continuous investment in healthcare infrastructure and skills development that the UAE has made over the past decades. We are delighted that our specialists in Hamburg at the HELIOS ENDO-Klinik will be part of the continued evolution of orthopaedics care, research and training here in the Gulf, and that the Hamburg team can also learn from and work closely with Dr Tarabichi and his team in Dubai."

Dr Samih Tarabichi, a UAE national, said, "Our mission is to provide world class treatment to patients with complicated and advanced conditions of bone and joint disease from across the Middle East. Our team is dedicated to understanding the needs of the region's patients - from the anatomical differences in their joints to their specific cultural and social needs, so that we can provide a standard of care that is unmatched anywhere in the world. To reach that goal, we are working with the very best doctors and healthcare professionals, investing in state of the art equipment, and making a commitment to continued research and academic excellence with our knowledge partners and European peers at the HELIOS ENDO-Klinik in Hamburg."

Dr Shamsheer Vayalil, Managing Director of Burjeel Hospitals, said, "We are delighted to partner with Dr Samih Tarabichi, the regional pioneer of joint replacement, in this state-of-the-art specialized hospital and Centre that will offer unrivalled treatment and standards of care within the region. Burjeel's knowledge of hospital operations and our international standards of healthcare management will complement Dr Tarabichi's outstanding reputation in his field."

The hospital aims to become the regional centre of excellence for advanced orthopaedic treatments including joint preservation, replacement and trauma and orthopaedic surgery for both children and adults. Its specialists will utilise the latest techniques in hip and knee replacement and in the treatment of bone and joint infections and will comprehensively treat acute fractures, post-traumatic complications, mal-unions, non-unions, infections and a variety of orthopaedic conditions.

With access to highly specialised medical teams that practice orthopaedics exclusively, patients will receive the full continuum of care including initial consultations, surgical and non-surgical services, hospital stay, as well as inpatient and outpatient physical therapy.