DUBAI // The workforce of Dubai's hospitals is typical of many workplaces in the country; a broad range of nationalities, different faiths and a multitude of languages spoken.
Now the secret to that diversity - and the strengths and challenges that it brings - is set out in a study by researchers.
Focused on healthcare, the work used data about the proportion of medical personnel within hospital teams in Dubai that were Muslim or non-Muslim, and Emirati or non-Emirati.
Their conclusion? Diversity is unquestionable good, but at high levels it can introduce challenges that need to be managed.
To understand how these potential influences played out, surveys were completed by 66 hospital wards, 49 of them medical wards and the other 17 surgical wards, at Dubai Hospital, Latifa Hospital and Rashid Hospital, home to one of the largest trauma wards.
One of the researchers, Dr Carmela Di Mauro, an associate professor in business engineering at the University of Catania in Italy, said that a "moderate degree" of diversity was found to be good, but that the data indicated that "things become more difficult" as it continues to increase up to the maximum diversity of 50 per cent of one group and fully 50 per cent of another.
"The reason why intuitively this high degree of diversity doesn't work, is because these two groups might become confrontational if two of equal size sub-groups form within the team… It's not beneficial to performance or decision-making," said Dr Di Mauro.
That said, Dr Di Mauro explained that it is equally beneficial to have a team made up of one group, say group A, constituting 25 per cent, with the other group B constituting fully 75 per cent, and vice versa. "In both cases, the addition of new cultural values, mindsets and points of view contributes to more effective decision-making."
As the study's authors said in a briefing document, a person's religion or nationality can affect their attitudes to work-related issues such as the role of the genders, it can influence how they behave or what they wear, especially in relation to religious festivals, and it can underpin important values, such as the extent to which they have a work ethic. In medicine it may also correlate with differences in training and clinical practice.
To understand how these potential influences played out, surveys were completed by 66 hospital wards, 49 of them medical wards and the other 17 surgical wards, at Dubai Hospital, Latifa Hospital and Rashid Hospital. The aim was to discover the relationship between religious/cultural diversity and efficiency.
A ward's efficiency was calculated using three inputs (the numbers of beds, doctors and nurses) and three outputs (the numbers of inpatient surgery discharges, inpatient non-surgery discharges and outpatients). From these a mathematical model produced a numeric value for efficiency.
Also from the surveys, a numeric value for religious diversity and for diversity in nationality was computed, before a regression analysis - a statistical method for determining the relationship between two variables - was carried out.
The relationship between the hospital teams' religious diversity and their efficiency, when plotted on a graph, produced an inverted U-shape. This means that team efficiency was relatively low when diversity was low, but it grew as diversity increased, peaking at a medium level of religious diversity, before falling as diversity continued to rise.
This finding ties in, Dr Di Mauro says, with work carried out in other employment sectors.
The effect tended to be stronger for surgical than for non-surgical teams, probably because the surgical teams carry out more complex tasks.
"The recommendation we give in the article [is] if you can avoid having that kind of diversity … of creating two sub-groups who may become confrontational inside the team, avoid it. It's a recommendation for hospital managers or [medical] speciality managers," she said.
"Sometimes it cannot be avoided. In that case the way is conflict management; you have to be a very good conflict manager to mitigate the negative effects of that."
Entitled Does Religious Diversity in Health Team Composition Affect Efficiency? Evidence from Dubai, the study was published in the British Journal of Management. Another of the authors was Dr Ali Ayach, a research fellow at University of Rome Tor Vergata in Italy who until 2014 worked for Dubai Health Authority as a consulting manager. The other authors were Dr Alessandro Ancarani, Dr Simone Gitto and Dr Paolo Mancuso, all affiliated to the University of Catania or the University of Rome Tor Vergata.
Dr Ayach, who has since left DHA and now works in the private sector, said the message from the research was that healthcare managers should not look just to technology to improve efficiency, but should adopt a "people-centred" approach.
"Furthermore, a proper standardisation of the medical practice is crucial in this case; such a standardisation may be reached through the introduction of new policies," he said.
Although the research found challenges associated with high diversity levels, Dr Di Mauro said that the study was not arguing against having a diverse workplace.
"What we try to argue is that multiculturalism is good, but you have to manage it; you cannot let it go freely because you might run into problems. but, in principle, it's a great thing," she said.
Remaining Fixtures
Wednesday: West Indies v Scotland
Thursday: UAE v Zimbabwe
Friday: Afghanistan v Ireland
Sunday: Final
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Company%20Profile
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
SPECS
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Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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IF YOU GO
The flights
FlyDubai flies direct from Dubai to Skopje in five hours from Dh1,314 return including taxes. Hourly buses from Skopje to Ohrid take three hours.
The tours
English-speaking guided tours of Ohrid town and the surrounding area are organised by Cultura 365; these cost €90 (Dh386) for a one-day trip including driver and guide and €100 a day (Dh429) for two people.
The hotels
Villa St Sofija in the old town of Ohrid, twin room from $54 (Dh198) a night.
St Naum Monastery, on the lake 30km south of Ohrid town, has updated its pilgrims' quarters into a modern 3-star hotel, with rooms overlooking the monastery courtyard and lake. Double room from $60 (Dh 220) a night.
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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