Dubai, Friday, 1st of April 2016: Under the patronage of Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Medical Sciences and in cooperation with the RAK Medical and Health Sciences University (RAKMHSU), Abdullah Bin Souqat, a member of the Board of Trustees of Hamdan Medical Award, opened today morning the 3rd Pedia Dubai International Conference in Pediatrics and Neonatology, at Al-Murooj Rotana Hotel, Dubai

.

The conference is held under the slogan "A healthier life for next generation", 400 doctors and specialists from Australia, USA, Europe, the GCC Countries, and Egypt, gathered to receive 22.5 CME hours accredited from the UAE Ministry of Health and Dubai Health Authority.

 

Attended the opening ceremony were Dr. Abdullah AL Khayat, a member of the board of trustees of Hamdan Medical Award and the Honor President of the conference, and Dr. Amin AL Amiri, Assistant Undersecretary for Public Health Policy and Licensing, the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention.

 

In his speech, Mr. Abdullah Bin Souqat spoke about the award’s major role in supporting continuing medical education (CME) and scientific research at various levels. He said: “This support naturally resulted in the advancement of medical and health services. All these achievements were the direct consequence of implementing the directives of the Patron of our Award, H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Deputy Ruler of Dubai and the Minister of Finance. These directives brought about the establishment of the Award more than 17 years ago. Throughout these years, the Award has become at the forefront of a movement that aims to apply principles of excellence in healthcare”.   

 

“We all realize the enormous developments that are happening in the world today and these developments come with serious challenges, particularly in the medical sector throughout all of its specialties. Faced with a quickly changing world over the past few years, the Award put forward a myriad of creative ideas that enabled it to develop a highly sophisticated formula to advance the healthcare system”, he added.

 

“The Award gave special attention to develop the traditional approach in organizing CME programs in order to widen their prospects, so that they can cope with the enormous developments in both medical and IT sectors. This was accomplished by collective effort to develop the quality of educational research and make such education flexible enough to be able to respond to the urgent needs of all its stakeholders according to a comprehensive strategic plan”, he said.   

 

“Collective happiness is the buzzword here in the United Arab Emirates, which ranked very high in the World Happiness Report as well as in many important international ranking systems. And I cannot emphasize strongly enough how the happiness of our children is at the very top of our priorities. Therefore, providing our children with the best of medical care is one of the most important paths to this desired happiness. However, such happiness will not be achieved merely by the large number of medical conferences, which are currently held and can be considered as a distraction and a waste of time for the doctors. It would rather be realized by focusing on research and translating its results into tangible achievements in our medical establishments”, Abdullah bin Souqat added.

 

Then, Dr Amin Al Amiri, Assistant Undersecretary for Public Health Policy and Licensing, the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention, pointed out to the significant growth of the health sector within the UAE over the past few years, as a result of the ministry's interest in enhancing the strategic partnership between the private and public sectors in order to reach the desired excellence in the medical field.

 

Also, he spoke about the great attention by the Ministry of Health in laying down the fundementals for happiness in the UAE society by developing the health policies, organizing the health sector, and taking all necessary preventive measures against diseases. He stressed that the ministry has a clear vision for achieving these goals, reflected on taking many policies, such as the development of licensing systems at the state level.

 

Prof. Debadatta Panigrahi, delivered his speech as the representative of RAKMHSU. He spoke about the importance of the conference’s topics in shedding light on the effective prevention and management of common childhood problems. Also, he spoke about the university as the first comprehensive health science university in the UAE, having medical, dental, nursing, and pharmaceutical science colleges, in addition to its Master programs in various fields of medicine.

 

Also, Dr. Sherif Mosaad, the President of the Conference, welcomed all the guests and said: “This year our theme is, A Healthier Life for Next Generation, as we want all children, regardless of race, creed, or circumstance to achieve their full potential. Our task is to make it possible. Our mission is to provide practical, step by step assistance”.

 

Concluding the opening ceremony, the accompanying exhibition was opened with the participation of 15 specialized companies, and the scientific sessions began as scheduled.