Harvard Medical International Board meeting held in Dubai

Dubai was the site of the most recent meeting on Wednesday, December 10th, the last day of the Practi-Med Dubai Continuous Medical Education event.

Since the launch of Dubai Healthcare City (DHCC) in November 2002, Dubai has taken major steps toward establishing itself as the regional center of excellence for world-class medical and wellness education, practice and research.

"We are honoured that Dubai has been selected as the location for the Board of Directors meeting of Harvard Medical International," said Saeed Al Muntafiq, Chairman of the Board, DHCC.

"This certainly implies a 'vote of confidence' in DHCC's mission of establishing Dubai as the regional healthcare hub . It is a recognition by one of the leading healthcare institutions in the world of what Dubai can offer to the global medical sector," Al Muntafiq said.

The Harvard Medical International Board of Directors meeting coincided with the Practi-Med Dubai Continuous Medical Education event, which took place December 8_10 at the Dubai International Convention Center. Over a thousand physicians, nurses, allied health professionals, and students gathered to participate in discussions about common healthcare challenges affecting communities in the region.

Vote of Confidence
Dr. Robert K. Crone, Chief Executive Officer of Harvard Medical International, said, "This meeting in Dubai gives HMI a great opportunity to demonstrate to the Harvard community how we are having an impact on communities around the world. It also allows close interaction between the leadership of Harvard Medical School and Dubai Healthcare City at a critical juncture of our partnership." The HMI and DHCC joint venture will drive the educational and clinical programs of Dubai Healthcare City.

The Harvard Medical School Board of Directors who met in Dubai include:
Joseph Martin, Dean of Harvard Medical School
Robert K. Crone
George Thibault
Judith Hope
Benjamin Sachs
Gregory Poppe
Cynthia Walker
Prof Henry Rosovsky.

The meeting capped the Practi-Med Conference, which is designed to help primary care physicians, nurses, and allied health care professionals build a foundation for enhanced health care delivery — and to use their new knowledge right away to have an immediate impact on their communities.

International Faculty
Leading international faculty from Harvard Medical School, the New England Journal of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Imperial College of London, Brown University, the University of Toronto and OPIC gathered in Dubai to present lectures on a wide range of healthcare challenges, said Adel Saeed Al Shamsi, DHCC CEO.

Practi-Med is the first of the Continuous Medical Educational Events that DHCC is delivering after the signing of the joint venture agreement with Harvard Medical International. It focuses on practical aspects of the medical sector, he added.

Practi-Med Dubai covers healthcare challenges common to the Middle Eastern countries, including the rise of cardiovascular and infectious disease, as well as cancer, diabetes, obesity, and the care of children and expectant mothers. The programme focuses also on ways to build sustainable diagnosis, prevention, and treatment systems that can have lasting benefits for health care delivery in the Middle East.

Joint Venture
DHCC had signed a joint venture agreement with Harvard Medical International at the end of June this year, under which a Harvard Medical School Centre for postgraduate and continuing medical education will be created at Dubai Healthcare City. This centre will be committed to delivering continuing medical education and postgraduate medical education of the highest quality. In addition, the joint venture will develop comprehensive quality assurance systems, which will ensure that all medical services within DHCC adhere to internationally accepted standards. Medical research is another important area of cooperation, with the goal of establishing significant medical and life science research projects that address medical care needs of the UAE and the broader region.

Harvard Medical School is one of the world's leading institutions in medical education and research and top-ranking medical schools in the U.S. for more than 15 years. The breadth and depth of its scientific and clinical disciplines are unsurpassed. The School has nearly 8,000 faculty and 17 affiliated facilities. At the core of the Medical School are its educational and research programmes.