ABU DHABI // The Emirate’s first modern hospital, the birthplace of many members of its Royal Family, will soon begin raising funds to further help residents who cannot afford medical care.
Last year, Oasis Hospital in Al Ain spent up to Dh2 million of its profits on medical bills and treatment for thousands of indigent residents.
The hospital, which was founded in 1960 by Christian missionaries and is the birthplace of Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, has stood firm by its Christian values and belief that everyone, regardless of wealth, nationality or religion, “deserves to be taken care of in the best way possible”, said its president, Trey Hulsey.
“Technically, everyone should have health insurance, but we all have different levels of health insurance and so what happens is that people who have low levels of insurance cannot afford treatment,” he said.
Such people are mostly unskilled workers, often from places such as India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, he said.
“Their insurance may not pay so much so, for example, they need medications that are worth Dh5,000 and their insurance would cover only Dh500 – or maybe they have kidney stones and their insurance covers only part of their bill.”
The hospital’s main concern in such situations, Mr Hulsey said, was how to treat the patient.
“So, while some private hospitals are trying to figure out how to make money from you; that is not our first concern. Our first concern is how can we treat you properly and make sure that you are well taken care of, not because we want to make money, but because we want to stay true to the roots of Oasis Hospital.”
The hospital, which is recognised for its obstetric and paediatric care, covers the outstanding bills of poor patients from profits it has generated.
“We don’t turn them [the needy] over to the police and we accept that they are not able to pay,” he said.
But with 15,000 patients a month at outpatient clinics, 3,000 births every year and 500 staff members, it is proving a challenge. “Demand is increasing and there is a greater need, especially now that we have moved to a larger building.”
Until recently, Mr Hulsey said, “We haven’t tried to raise money in the UAE but we will soon have to. We really want to take care of people in a good way and this is part of our faith-based organisation, where we believe that God loves us and we want to love other people because of Him,” he said.
“We try to help patients who cannot pay but it’s not a free service. We can’t do that financially,” said Bashar Al Khalaf, customer service manager.
“We never refuse a patient but we ask them to work with us to pay off their bill. They can pay us in instalments, but we cannot cover it 100 per cent,” he said.
Yet the hospital still pays a large percentage of the bill, sometimes as much as 80 per cent.
“We also refer the patient to the Red Crescent and other charity organisations, but we don’t take any legal action against patients if they still can’t pay,” Mr Khalaf said.
On patients who cannot afford the costs, he said: “Recently we have been receiving many Syrian patients – almost a patient a week. Some will have brought their wives on a visit visa or have lost their jobs so they have no health insurance, there are many different reasons.
“Not all have a valid visa, and legally we are not required to report them to the police. Our concern is how to treat them.”
One such patient was 65-year-old Abdel Hamid Mohamed, who had a stroke in August at his house in Al Ain. The shopowner from Kerala, south India, had no health insurance and could not afford to go to the hospital.
“I was at home with my wife and it was 1am [when he had the stroke]. She took me to Oasis Hospital even after I told her that no one will take me because I had no insurance and my visa had expired.”
The hospital, he said, never asked for any of his documents.
“They didn’t care. They took me to the emergency and they said I needed heart surgery.”
Mr Mohamed was sent by the hospital to Sheikh Khalifa Medical City for surgery. He had four blocked arteries and required urgent attention.
“They never asked me for any money. I stayed for three days in Abu Dhabi for [the] operation and many, many doctors saw me, but no one asked for money.”
salnuwais@thenational.ae
Employment lawyer Meriel Schindler of Withers Worldwide shares her tips on achieving equal pay
Do your homework
Make sure that you are being offered a fair salary. There is lots of industry data available, and you can always talk to people who have come out of the organisation. Where I see people coming a cropper is where they haven’t done their homework.
Don’t be afraid to negotiate
It’s quite standard to negotiate if you think an offer is on the low side. The job is unlikely to be withdrawn if you ask for money, and if that did happen I’d question whether you want to work for an employer who is so hypersensitive.
Know your worth
Women tend to be a bit more reticent to talk about their achievements. In my experience they need to have more confidence in their own abilities – men will big up what they’ve done to get a pay rise, and to compete women need to turn up the volume.
Work together
If you suspect men in your organisation are being paid more, look your boss in the eye and say, “I want you to assure me that I’m paid equivalent to my peers”. If you’re not getting a straight answer, talk to your peer group and consider taking direct action to fix inequality.
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.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The five pillars of Islam
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City's slump
L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
L - Tottenham, 2-1
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
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Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
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Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
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.”
The specs
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
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- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
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Padmaavat
Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor, Jim Sarbh
3.5/5
Porsche Taycan Turbo specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 1050Nm
Range: 450km
Price: Dh601,800
On sale: now
Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Famous left-handers
- Marie Curie
- Jimi Hendrix
- Leonardo Di Vinci
- David Bowie
- Paul McCartney
- Albert Einstein
- Jack the Ripper
- Barack Obama
- Helen Keller
- Joan of Arc
Pad Man
Dir: R Balki
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor, Radhika Apte
Three-and-a-half stars
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:
Ajax 2-3 Tottenham
Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate
Final: June 1, Madrid
