Middle East's healthcare initiatives attract global attention

Prof. Herrling, who has been the driving force behind the establishment of major research institutions for Novartis, in Singapore, Switzerland and the United States, arrived in Dubai for discussions with government and medical organizations about the potential for collaboration on medical research and educational projects.

'One of the major objectives of Novartis' global research strategy is to look for long-term projects that can enable us to address unmet medical needs around the world, and Dubai and the wider region offers a range of potentially interesting opportunities for partnership,' said Prof. Herrling.

'A number of organizations and government bodies within the Middle East are working hard to develop local scientific experience and infrastructure, and Novartis is keen to support this process. The world is facing an array of critical health issues, which need to be addressed by the global scientific community, and researchers within the Middle East are playing a key role in this collaborative effort,' added Prof. Herrling.

Prof. Herrling cited a number of positive developments that he has discussed during this visit, including facilities such as Dubai Healthcare City and the International Medical Center (IMC) in Jeddah.

At the same time, he noted that a number of factors within the Middle East raise the severity of healthcare risks, including a rapidly expanding population, the growth of free movement of people between countries in the region, increasing drug resistance, and the explosion of 'lifestyle' diseases such as hypertension and diabetes.

In addition, in his discussions with local health authorities, Prof. Herrling focused on thalaseemia - a genetic blood disorder which has a particularly high incidence within the United Arab Emirates and wider Middle East. Novartis is a pioneer in the treatment of this condition through its key medication Desferal, including upcoming new oral medications.

These factors increase the importance of ongoing research and educational initiatives.

Prof. Herrling's experience in establishing research institutes includes his work with the Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases (NITD) in Singapore, a long-term endeavor to advance medical research in the area of progressive infectious diseases, a field which historically has received little funding.

The NITD focuses on advanced biomedical research for 'orphan' diseases such as dengue fever and drug resistant tuberculosis (TB), which afflict as many as 200 million people worldwide every year, and yet receive limited funding for research.

Given the success of the NITD and other facilities in both developing the healthcare sector and contributing to long-term health goals, Novartis is examining the potential of extending its collaborative approach to medical organizations within the Middle East.

'Partnerships between Novartis and medical research facilities within the communities in which we are represented not only reflects our company's ongoing commitment to the biomedical sciences, it contributes significantly to advancing human healthcare around the world,' said Prof. Herrling.