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29 March 2024

Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid opens Arab Health Exhibition and Congress

Published
By Wam

Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, UAE Minister of Finance and President of Dubai Health Authority inaugurated on Monday the 42nd edition of Arab Health Exhibition and Congress, the region’s largest gathering of healthcare and trade professionals, at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

This year’s Arab Health features an additional 400 exhibitors, with 4,400 companies showcasing their latest innovations to an expected 110,000+ attendees from over 70 countries.

The event saw the introduction of the new Hands-on-Training (HoT) sessions, which allow more than 900 physicians, surgeons and technicians from the region to learn and practice new techniques using state-of-the-art equipment for specialised treatments in areas such as cardiology, neurology, surgery, gastroenterology, urology, oncology and radiology. These novel training tracks aim to support the need for more specialised medical training in the region, and bridge the gap between advanced medical techniques and regional expertise.

Commenting on the opening of Arab Health 2017, Humaid Al Qatami, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director-General of the Dubai Health Authority (DHA), said: "Dubai has become one of the world's most attractive destinations to gather international experts and major institutions for conferences and forums. The city provides a promising platform for economic trade and business exchange, and fostering future relationships. This is in line with the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, for Dubai to be central to all future projects including those in healthcare."

"The Arab Health Exhibition and Congress is an important opportunity for international health institutions to exchange knowledge, access the latest in medical technology, and review what has been achieved within healthcare and emerging fields of healthcare such as smart health technology. The DHA is always keen to embrace unique medical solutions that help deliver better health outcomes and such congresses provide us a platform to network with experts in the field from the region and abroad," His Excellency concluded.

Speaking about the growing focus of specialised healthcare and Dubai Healthcare City’s participation as a leading congress supporter at Arab Health, Khalid Ahmed Al Sheikh Al Shamsi, CEO, Dubai Healthcare City Authority, said, "We have witnessed positive changes in the health sector whereby patients nowadays demand for higher degrees of efficiency and flexibility from the healthcare system. In this context, we at DHCA are proud to support a platform such as Arab Health Exhibition and Congress which provides a great insight into the latest developments within the healthcare industry."

Simon Page, Managing Director, Informa Life Sciences Exhibitions, the organisers of Arab Health, said: "Hosting the region’s most-awaited healthcare event each year comes with great responsibility and an expectation to bring forward the latest breakthroughs at both the exhibition and medical congress. As Arab Health continues to expand year-on-year, so does the demand for advanced medical technology and services in the Middle East. Once again, we are proud to be able to bring together many of the world’s pioneering medical manufacturers, respected healthcare providers and most eminent medical professionals all under one roof, to explore the latest industry innovations, network and do business."

Running for the second year and following its success in 2016, the 3D Medical Printing Zone has expanded for this edition of Arab Health, reflecting the growing use of 3D printing technology in healthcare, estimated to grow by 18.3 percent annually until 2020 . Items on show include 3D-printed bionic limbs and real life models of 3D-printed organ models among others.

"Our vision for 3D printing to become the standard of care is becoming a reality, based on forward thinking groups and leaders such as Dr. Mohammad Al Redha in the Department of Organisational Transformation in the Dubai Health Authority and the adoption of 3D printing across its hospitals," said Scott Rader, GM Medical Solutions at Stratasys, Industry Partners at Arab Health 2017.

Arab Health’s multi-track congress offers the highest quality programme of Continuing Medical Education (CME) to over 8,500 attending medical professionals in the region.

The opening day features the 3D Medical Printing Conference, the Public Health Forum as well as the Oncology, Orthopaedics, Surgery and Paediatrics Conferences and the Total Radiology Conference.

A total of 14 conferences will be held over the four days including Workforce Empowerment, Big Data, Healthcare Business Forum, Quality Management, Emergency Medicine, Gastroenterology, and the Leaders in Healthcare conference, which will officially be inaugurated by Chairperson of Dubai Healthcare City Authority HRH Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein, wife of Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai on the final day of the congress.