«Health and Community Protection» signs memorandums of understanding with the private health sector to enhance preparedness for emergencies and crises

Within the framework of strengthening national health security and developing a flexible response system capable of facing future challenges, the Ministry of Health and Community Protection concluded memorandums of understanding with five private health facilities, including; Thumbay Group – University Hospital, Ajman Hospital, Fujairah Hospital, Amina Hospital, and Dar Al Kamal Hospital in Sharjah.

These memorandums aim to establish an integrated model between the government and private sectors in managing emergency cases, ensuring the sustainability of medical services in accordance with the highest standards of quality and efficiency under a unified national umbrella of preparedness and readiness.

The signing ceremony was attended by Dr. Amin Al Amiri, Assistant Undersecretary for the Health Regulation Sector, in addition to Dr. Abdul Karim Al Zarouni, Emergency, Crisis and Disaster Advisor, who signed the memorandums as a representative of the Ministry.

An operational framework to increase readiness

The memorandums of understanding establish frameworks under which the Ministry directly supervises the preparation and updating of emergency medical response plans for hospitals, medical evacuation programs, and the development of business continuity strategies to ensure the provision of basic services and their effective implementation when any emergency occurs. The Ministry, through the Emergency and Crisis Operations Center, will also update the risk register for each facility and involve its cadres in simulation exercises and specialized training courses.

For their part, the signed health facilities will employ their logistical and medical capabilities to support the national system, by placing 30% of their bed capacity at the disposal of the Ministry’s Operations Center upon request, and ensuring the provision of a strategic medical stock of medicines and basic supplies for a period of no less than two months, in addition to allocating control rooms equipped for continuous communication with the Ministry’s Operations Center.

Health emergency management strategy

Dr. Abdul Karim Al Zarouni, Emergency, Crisis and Disaster Advisor at the Ministry of Health and Community Protection, confirmed that the signing of these memorandums represents a qualitative shift in the country’s health emergency management strategy, as we move from the general coordination stage to an effective operational partnership that unifies standards and protocols between the government and private sectors.

He pointed out that private health facilities are an essential partner in the national health security system. Therefore, the agreements aim to build a flexible response network capable of immediately expanding capacity and dealing with different scenarios with high efficiency, ensuring that the government and private health system remains in a state of maximum alert under unified central supervision.

Dr. Al-Zarouni added that the essence of this cooperation is based on the integration of human and technical resources, as the memorandums include precise commitments to digital connectivity through the “Jahez” and “Mawariduna” platforms to ensure the flow of data in real time, which enhances the speed of decision-making based on field evidence. He explained that investing in continuous training and joint mock exercises, along with securing strategic medical stock and equipping connected control rooms, contributes directly to raising the level of institutional and societal readiness, while the Ministry is keen to provide technical and supervisory support to its private hospital partners to ensure the highest levels of readiness. To confront urgent health challenges.

Information exchange and digital transformation

He pointed out that the memorandums guarantee the facilities’ commitment to periodically update their medical resource data via approved digital platforms, while adhering to the provisions of the Council of Ministers’ decision regarding publishing and exchanging health information related to communicable diseases, and maintaining complete confidentiality of the data exchanged between the parties to ensure the accuracy and safety of official communication in crisis situations.

For their part, officials of private health facilities expressed their commitment to supporting the Ministry’s efforts in the field of health security to enhance the efficiency of the national system in facing emergency challenges according to an integrated, proactive approach, stressing that integration with the government sector establishes shared societal responsibility and contributes to unifying preventive and curative efforts under one umbrella, ensuring business continuity and protecting society, which establishes the UAE’s leadership in formulating global standards for preparedness and flexible response to health crises of various levels.