DHCA Announces Plans To Become UAE’s First National Healthcare Accrediting Body

DUBAI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 06th Jun, 2018) Dubai Healthcare City Authority, DHCA, the governing body of Dubai Healthcare City, DHCC, on Wednesday announced plans to be the first national accrediting body in the UAE for hospitals and clinics in the free zone.

In line with the UAE Vision 2021, health authorities are working to achieve a world-class healthcare system. An integral part of this vision is to have all public and private hospitals accredited according to national and international quality standards.

Dubai Healthcare City Authority – Regulatory, DHCR, the independent regulatory arm of the DHCA, has signed an agreement with the consultancy institution, Health Care Accreditation Council, HCAC, in Jordan, to facilitate the DHCR’s process to receive accreditation as an organisation from the International Society for Quality in Healthcare, ISQua.

A global leader in assessing the standards in healthcare safety and quality, ISQua is the only organisation that "accredits the accreditors."

Dr. Ramadan AlBlooshi, CEO of the DHCR, said, "With mandatory accreditation and rapid growth of the healthcare sector in the UAE, our health system requires national accrediting bodies in the long-term to be cost-effective and sustainable.

As the body responsible for setting standards and improving the quality of care, the Dubai Healthcare City Authority – Regulatory, will expand its scope to be recognised as a national accrediting body."

Once accredited, the DHCR, as part of its scope, will be able to accredit hospitals within the DHCC and branches of the DHCC-based hospitals across the different free zones in the emirate as well as extend the accreditation to any healthcare provider that seeks accreditation.

"We will be able to assess, track and monitor performance by hospitals as well as outpatient clinics. We will also be able to have greater oversight and drive improvements in quality in the free zone and for other industry stakeholders," said AlBlooshi.

The HCAC will work closely with the DHCR for the entire accreditation process.

The DHCR is the first independent organisation in the region to attain ISQua accreditation for developing outpatient clinics’ standards in 2009, and last year, the body received the 3rd consecutive cycle of accreditation for its Dubai Outpatient Clinic Quality Standards valid until April 2021.