World Health Day, marked annually on April 7, serves as an important platform to shed light on pressing health concerns of global significance.
As nations consider the future, it also provides an opportunity to delve into the continued evolution of the healthcare landscape.
The healthcare sector is being propelled by the burgeoning field of medical technology, or MedTech, whose value is projected to reach a staggering $610.2 billion worldwide by 2024 according to Statista Market Insights.
MedTech refers to the technologies and devices used by healthcare systems to diagnose, treat and improve the health of patients.
As technology assumes an increasingly integral role in our daily lives, it has changed not only healthcare delivery but also the perception and management of wellness worldwide.
Here are the tools shaping and changing the health industry:
Robotic surgeries
Robotics and automation are revolutionising various facets of healthcare delivery.
Using technology such as the Da Vinci Robot, surgeons can perform complicated procedures through tiny incisions, resulting in minimal scarring and less invasive surgery.
These systems can enhance surgeons' precision, adaptability, and command over procedures.
Last year, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, a member of the M42 network, collaborated with colleagues from Cleveland Clinic in the US to perform robot-assisted kidney transplants, marking a notable achievement for the healthcare sector in the UAE.
Artificial intelligence
Like many industries globally, the emergence of artificial intelligence is transforming healthcare.
With AI-driven diagnostic tools, detecting diseases is becoming more accurate, faster, and more efficient than ever.
Machine-learning algorithms also help healthcare professionals make informed decisions and improve patient outcomes through analysing vast data sets.
IBM showed the superior speed and efficiency of its AI system when it managed to detect acute myeloid leukaemia from blood samples in under four hours.
This is in contrast with human experts, who require 10 days to reach the same diagnosis.
Dubai diabetes centre GluCare became the first in the Middle East to use AI-assisted ultrasound technology, which improves the diagnosis accuracy of sonographic calcifications of thyroid nodules within a single visit.
Unlike the traditional approach which relies on physicians’ assessment alone, this approach decreases the need for unnecessary procedures by about 50 per cent.
Dr Shanila Laiju, the group chief executive of Medcare hospitals and medical centres, said that AI not only increases the capacity for medical practitioners to care for a larger number of patients simultaneously, but also holds the potential to enhance preventive nature of healthcare.
Telemedicine and telehealth platforms
Telemedicine allows doctors to speak with patients and recommend treatment online, eliminating the need for a drive to the physician's office.
The technology is helping tens of thousands who would otherwise have limited access to medical care because they live in remote locations, lack transportation options, or are unable to walk.
Proximie, founded by Lebanese plastic surgeon Nadine Hachhach-Haram, is a global health tech company that has created an augmented reality platform.
This platform allows surgeons to communicate during an operation by sharing a live video stream, including multiple camera views and medical scans, along with a computer-generated overlay for drawing instructions on the shared screen.
Medcare centres carry out about 54 teleconsultations every day, said Dr Laiju.
3D printing
3D printing technology is driving innovation in patient-specific medical devices, prosthetics, and tissue engineering.
By enabling the rapid prototyping of complex body parts, 3D printing allows customised treatment solutions, enhancing patient comfort and clinical outcomes.
Dubai Health Authority's Primary Healthcare Centre and Rashid Hospital collaborated with 3D printing healthcare start-up Sinterex in 2019 to save the jaw of a 17-year-old girl who had an aggressive tumour.
With the help of digital planning and 3D printing, they created a patient-specific solution that included a surgical guide and titanium implants, demonstrating the importance of 3D printing for complex medical procedures.
The UAE government's portal predicts that the value of 3D-printed medical products, including teeth, bones, organs, devices, and hearing aids, in Dubai will reach $462.9 million by 2025.
Also in 2020, surgeons in Abu Dhabi saved the life of a boy suffering from complex congenital heart abnormalities using a 3D model of his failing organ.
The paediatric cardiac team at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City created a 3D printed model to plan a lengthy and intricate surgery on six-year-old-today Adam Sadlah to correct multiple major malformations.
These technological innovations represent on a glimpse into the transformative potential of technology in healthcare, driving progress towards a future where healthcare is not only more efficient and accessible but also more personalised and effective in safeguarding global health and well-being.
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The five pillars of Islam
SCORES IN BRIEF
Lahore Qalandars 186 for 4 in 19.4 overs
(Sohail 100,Phil Salt 37 not out, Bilal Irshad 30, Josh Poysden 2-26)
bt Yorkshire Vikings 184 for 5 in 20 overs
(Jonathan Tattersall 36, Harry Brook 37, Gary Ballance 33, Adam Lyth 32, Shaheen Afridi 2-36).
Liverpool's all-time goalscorers
Ian Rush 346
Roger Hunt 285
Mohamed Salah 250
Gordon Hodgson 241
Billy Liddell 228
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Tributes from the UAE's personal finance community
• Sebastien Aguilar, who heads SimplyFI.org, a non-profit community where people learn to invest Bogleheads’ style
“It is thanks to Jack Bogle’s work that this community exists and thanks to his work that many investors now get the full benefits of long term, buy and hold stock market investing.
Compared to the industry, investing using the common sense approach of a Boglehead saves a lot in costs and guarantees higher returns than the average actively managed fund over the long term.
From a personal perspective, learning how to invest using Bogle’s approach was a turning point in my life. I quickly realised there was no point chasing returns and paying expensive advisers or platforms. Once money is taken care off, you can work on what truly matters, such as family, relationships or other projects. I owe Jack Bogle for that.”
• Sam Instone, director of financial advisory firm AES International
"Thought to have saved investors over a trillion dollars, Jack Bogle’s ideas truly changed the way the world invests. Shaped by his own personal experiences, his philosophy and basic rules for investors challenged the status quo of a self-interested global industry and eventually prevailed. Loathed by many big companies and commission-driven salespeople, he has transformed the way well-informed investors and professional advisers make decisions."
• Demos Kyprianou, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"Jack Bogle for me was a rebel, a revolutionary who changed the industry and gave the little guy like me, a chance. He was also a mentor who inspired me to take the leap and take control of my own finances."
• Steve Cronin, founder of DeadSimpleSaving.com
"Obsessed with reducing fees, Jack Bogle structured Vanguard to be owned by its clients – that way the priority would be fee minimisation for clients rather than profit maximisation for the company.
His real gift to us has been the ability to invest in the stock market (buy and hold for the long term) rather than be forced to speculate (try to make profits in the shorter term) or even worse have others speculate on our behalf.
Bogle has given countless investors the ability to get on with their life while growing their wealth in the background as fast as possible. The Financial Independence movement would barely exist without this."
• Zach Holz, who blogs about financial independence at The Happiest Teacher
"Jack Bogle was one of the greatest forces for wealth democratisation the world has ever seen. He allowed people a way to be free from the parasitical "financial advisers" whose only real concern are the fat fees they get from selling you over-complicated "products" that have caused millions of people all around the world real harm.”
• Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"In an industry that’s synonymous with greed, Jack Bogle was a lone wolf, swimming against the tide. When others were incentivised to enrich themselves, he stood by the ‘fiduciary’ standard – something that is badly needed in the financial industry of the UAE."
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
The biog
Favourite films: Casablanca and Lawrence of Arabia
Favourite books: Start with Why by Simon Sinek and Good to be Great by Jim Collins
Favourite dish: Grilled fish
Inspiration: Sheikh Zayed's visionary leadership taught me to embrace new challenges.
Match info
Premier League
Manchester United 2 (Martial 30', Lingard 69')
Arsenal 2 (Mustafi 26', Rojo 68' OG)
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Oppenheimer
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Roger Federer's 2018 record
Australian Open Champion
Rotterdam Champion
Indian Wells Runner-up
Miami Second round
Stuttgart Champion
Halle Runner-up
Wimbledon Quarter-finals
Cincinnati Runner-up
US Open Fourth round
Shanghai Semi-finals
Basel Champion
Paris Masters Semi-finals
