Sharjah24: Adding yet another feather to its cap, the Sharjah-based Al Qassimi Hospital has achieved accreditation as a centre of excellence in the treatment of Atrioventricular (AV) block from the Joint Commission International (JCI).

The advanced international accreditation was granted to the hospital after passing rigorous assessments by JCI using virtual assessment technology, something which will further bolster the UAE’s leadership globally in terms of the number of health facilities obtaining JCI international accreditation.

Currently, there are more than 217 internationally accredited medical facilities nationwide, including hospitals, primary health care centres, specialised healthcare centres, and laboratories.

With this landmark achievement, Al Qassimi Hospital, one of the leading health facilities of the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) and one of the prominent medical edifices in the UAE, adds another milestone to its track record of achievements, which will further enhance its global leadership position in the field of performing complex and rare medical procedures, including robotic cardiac surgeries, thanks to its distinguished medical personnel, state-of-the-art infrastructure and advanced medical equipment.

The new achievement was announced by the Ministry of Health, which emphasised that it has become the fastest institution in the world to internationally accredit its facilities within 6 years, something which turned it into a unique entity having the largest international accreditation network for primary health care centres with 16 centres nationwide.
The ministry said it also accounts for the lion’s share of entities obtaining international accreditation in the country and is the first terms of the number of accreditation networks, which amounts to 5 networks in Dubai, Sharjah, Umm Al Quwain and Ras Al Khaimah. 

MoHAP affirmed that the UAE, over the past few years, has entered a new phase of excellence as part its race towards leadership by ascending to advanced positions in all major indicators and reports issued by international institutions.

Nonstop Achievements
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Yousif Mohammed Al Serkal, Director-General of the Emirates Health Services Establishment (EHSE), said: “The recent accreditation obtained by Al Qassimi Hospital, which is the latest in a series of achievements made by the hospital, is no more than a real implementation wise words said by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai-The UAE’s achievements are great, and the progress of development and excellence will never stop-”.

“The UAE is the first in the globe in 110 indicators according to the most important global competitiveness reports, including the internationally accredited healthcare facilities index, which was excellently managed and supervised by the Ministry of Health in cooperation with health authorities,” Al Serkal said, adding that the ministry is proud to be part of the UAE’s progress of achievements and its inspirational leadership.

He emphasised that the process of achievements in the UAE has not and will never stop or slow down despite the many global challenges brought by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, thanks to its wise leadership and unequivocal determination to realize sustainable development, the UAE has become an innovative role model and an unmatched success story, which strengthened its position among the world's fastest-developing countries, enabling it to deservedly secure an advanced position among the world’s most advanced countries at all levels, including health.

Therefore, the Ministry of Health is very keen to play its full part and be as much influential, active and supportive as it can be to support the country’s non-stop efforts,” he noted, adding that the ministry will spare no effort to promote the sustainability of health services to exceptionally serving patient while ensuring their safety and providing patient with a unique treatment journey and experience. This comes in line with the UAE government's vision and its journey towards the UAE Centennial 2071, which aims to make the UAE one of the best countries in the world,” Al Serkal underscored.

Al Qasimi Hospital: Accreditation Achievements 
Speaking on the accreditation achievements obtained by the hospital, Director-General of the EHSE said: “This is not the first time Al Qassimi Hospital obtains an international accreditation. In 2018, it received accreditation in recognition of its healthcare services, thanks to which it was classified as a global institution in the field of providing quality health care to patients. It has also obtained advanced international accreditation as a centre of excellence in heart attack and a centre of excellence for bariatric surgery. It is the first health facility in the Middle East to use the “Dynamics” Arterial Bio-matching System, which is the first implantation stent to supply medicine in the world in line with the physiology of the arteries. 
The hospital also provides highly professional general and advanced specialities, and is continuously being supported by the ministry to help it improve the quality of health services offered and ensure patient safety as well as the application of governance standards, clinical review, ethical standards and the best international practices”.

He made it clear that the ministry has a vision now to internationally accredit all of its health facilities according to the timeframe by promoting innovation and applying the best internationally approved standards and protocols.

Advanced Infrastructure 
“Al Qassimi Hospital is equipped with advanced infrastructure that supports the ministry’s programs, including the Electronic Health Record (Wareed), which enables clinicians treating people in a variety of settings to exchange and continuously update a patient's clinical data and then present that information in logical clinical groupings that other clinicians can access easily,” he further said. 

Robotic Cardiac Surgeries
Lauding the distinguished achievements made by the hospital especially in the treatment of heart diseases, Dr. Arif Al Nooryani, Executive Director of Al Qasimi Hospital, affirmed that the hospital is doing its utmost to make the most of robotic devices to conduct cardiovascular surgeries. The hospital’s Cardiology Center has become a perfectly “robotic" facility, housing the latest world-class devices used in cardiac treatments such as, " Corindus, "Da Vinci" and " Hansen ". 

“The ministry of health has been very keen to make these robotic techniques available in the UAE thanks to their medical and therapeutic capabilities, something which would bring about a qualitative leap in the health and treatment services provided by the hospital’s cardiology centre.

 Thanks to making optimal use of the latest international devices and technologies and its ability to perform complicated surgeries, the hospital will certainly be turned into a global hub for cardiac interventions” Al Nooryani said. 

Cardiology Center: Achievements
Outlining some of its remarkable achievements, Dr. Al Nooryani said that the cardiology centre, which is the largest of its kind in the UAE, handles 50 to 60 case per month and has successfully performed cardiac catheters on the coronary arteries feeding the heart muscle and placed stents for more than 27,000 patients.

“We have introduced new techniques to the centre to further boost its treatment capabilities including the shock wave technology to treat coronary artery calcification, the laser-based coronary artery expansion technology, and the Middle East’s first of its kind “Dynamix Stent”, a biocompatible stent to treat coronary arteries, in addition to the Rotate on Retract tool (ROR) using artificial intelligence to treat coronary arteries.

 The centre is also capable of placing a temporary pump to support the left ventricular function (iVac) for patients who suffer severely impaired left ventricular function during catheterization and is also employing the Corindus Vascular Robotics in the cardiac catheters’ procedures, where four artificial intelligence techniques were introduced. Not only that, but the centre is also able to treat drug-resistant hypertension by cauterizing the renal artery with a new (Spiral) catheter,” Al Nooryani added.

“In 2020, the Department of Cardiac Surgery has made several milestones including the first-in-human implantation of the pulmonary artery pressure sensor, establishing a drive-through clinic to check pacemakers remotely, the implantation of a pacemaker to strengthen the heart muscle, the implantation of a battery-powered pacemaker in atrium and ventricle (New Micra AV), and obtaining the Clinical Care Program Certification (CCPC) from the Joint Commission International.

This is in addition to what it has been accomplished over the years, such as the publication of scientific research in the International Circulation Journal, the publication of two books in the field of cardiac electricity globally, pacemaker implantation to more than 700 patients since 2014, and conducting an electromagnetic and cauterizing study on the heart muscle for more than 500 cases and performing the first cryotherapy to treat atrial fibrillation in 2014,” the Executive Director of the hospital further said.

Al Nooryani went on to say that in 2020, the Department of Cardiac Surgery has successfully used the ulnar artery and internal thoracic artery in performing the Coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) instead of the great saphenous vein, while it as able to implant the stun device under the skin of 8 patients in the previous years in addition to using endoscopy to strip the great saphenous vein and ulnar artery in the coronary bypass surgery and performed a laparoscopic mitral valve repair. Moreover, it has successfully performed 15 coronary bypass surgeries and placed the region's first cardiac assist device. 

Other achievements also include performing tens of complicated open-heart surgeries, coronary bypass surgeries with and without repair, replacement of heart valves, replacement or repair of heart valves, treating ventricular septal defect and abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, with approximately 1,463 heart operations successfully conducted, he further said.