“A PERSONALIZED HUMAN TOUCH BLENDED WITH INNOVATION IS WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT”
Burjeel Hospital is a multi-specialty care hospital that uses a tailor-made approach for patients. It provides world-class, specialized healthcare to the growing population of Abu Dhabi and the MENA region. “Hospitals” Magazine had the privilege to interview Professor Abdel Rahman Ahmed Omer, Chief Executive Officer at Burjeel Hospital.
Prof. Omer, can you tell us about your journey in the medical world?
After completion of my schooling in Abu Dhabi, UAE, I went on to complete my basic medical education in the Faculty of Medicine University of Khartoum Sudan and University College of London (MBBS). I completed my Surgical Training between the UK and USA. During this period, I had academic studies resulting in being awarded a Master’s Degree in Surgical Sciences (MSc.) from the University College London UK and a doctorate (PhD) in Medical Management from the Hartford University in the US. Professionally, I completed my training in surgery in the University of London Hospitals, Oxford and Cambridge Joint Board (UK) and Cleveland Clinic Florida (USA) becoming a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, The Royal Colleges of Surgeons UK, the American College of Surgeons and many other international institutes worldwide. I also progressed in the academic, research and authorship achieving a Professor of Surgery position. Career wise, I worked my way to be Director of Surgery, Lead for Coloproctology Inflammatory Bowel Diseases & Cancer care, Regional Pelvic Surgeon and Lead for Emergency Surgical Care (UK) on top of collaborating with international institutes across the globe (USA, Sweden, France, Italy, Japan, India and more). I am currently the CEO and a Consultant Surgeon at Burjeel Hospital Abu Dhabi,UAE.
Can you tell us about the mission and vision of Burjeel Hospital?
Our vision is to become the number one provider of excellence in healthcare, not only locally but on a regional level, and an internationally recognized center of excellence for the provision of healthcare with high patient satisfaction and outstanding outcomes.
We are using our internationally recognized medical experts to provide excellence in healthcare, where we create a system that is designed to cater to patients, families and caregivers based on evidence-based practice to achieve the best outcomes that matter to our patients.
We are trying to improve our quality of care by integrating hospitality as part of healthcare provision. We know that the role of hospitality and service culture in the patient experience is key to a better outcome for patients. Like a five-star hotel service, patients arrive at our hospital with certain expectations, so we try to give them that hospitality feeling from the moment they enter the hospital until the moment they leave. We believe that psychology is a crucial part of the healing journey of every patient.
What are the added services of such a renowned multi-specialty hospital that make a difference in treating patients and give them a hotel-like feeling?
Along with world-class medical professionals, the latest diagnostic equipment and superior healthcare services, we provide a hotel atmosphere from the concierge service at check-in to hotel feel ambiance in our rooms where we try to deliver warmth and personalized service to our patients to the point where they feel like they are in a health resort. A personalized human touch blended with innovation is what makes us different.
What are your thoughts about the healthcare sector in the UAE?
The healthcare industry in the region and especially in the UAE has come a long way. The UAE is known to invest a lot in healthcare but it needed to make some changes because of the nature of the patients it caters for. Not only do UAE residents seek medical services but all the expats living and working in the UAE also created a real challenge because we needed to understand the mixture of cultures and how
to provide them with the best services and make them feel like home. We always work hand in hand with the UAE government for better healthcare services from planning to delivery and I can’t but mention the great work the UAE leadership and government carried out during the Covid-19 pandemic that made the UAE one of the best countries in providing care to its residents during these difficult times extending this to the rest of the world.
Let’s highlight the state-of-the-art treatment facilities in different specialties offered at Burjeel Hospital Abu Dhabi.
We, at Burjeel Hospital, offer services in vast areas both medically and surgically e.g. Cardiothoracic Surgery, Metabolic Medicine and Surgery, Orthopedics, Cardiology, Rheumatology and Oncology, among others. We extend the care we provide in collaboration with our state-of-the-art Burjeel Medical City Hospital (Oncology and Bone Marrow Transplant) becoming an icon of top class healthcare provision in the region. All these services are provided by highly skilled and renowned world-class professionals augmented by highly skilled dedicated teams that work every day to provide patients with the best healthcare experience possible and supported by the best technology available worldwide with an active international Research and Development Institute. All these services are based on the difference between the concept of department stores versus boutique stores. Our services are more like boutique stores where we offer a 7-star service with attractively designed interiors and restaurant facilities with many coffee shops that cater to all tastes. This is why we have built a strong sense of trust among patients and we became the number one center of excellence across the UAE.
The Hospital has won numerous awards, can you name a few? And how do you see the Hospital evolving in the future?
We have won numerous awards, including the Economic Times’ Best Asian Healthcare Brand, Hospital Build & Infrastructure Middle East’s Best Laboratory Design, a recognition award from Al Hosn Gas for our contribution to the breast cancer awareness campaign and an appreciation award from IDEA annual students education exhibition. Also, we were named “Healthcare Company of the Year” by Arabian Business Achievement Awards, “Best Medical Tourism Hospital” by Global Brands Magazine and last but not least, we were invited to Sheikh Khalifa’s Award which is considered one of the top awards in the UAE and we are very proud of taking part in it. As for the hospital’s goals for the future, we are committed to excellence in everything we do. We have a mission to maintain the quality of a 7-star hospital and the establishment of new centers of excellence within our hospital and our twin hospital, Burjeel Medical City. We also plan to centralize many services together for better enhancement of the quality of service. Digitalization is also our main priority; our target is to become paperless and be able to improve patients’ experience by creating a more intelligent environment. We will be also focusing more on medical tourism; we are building special units for visitors coming from abroad and diplomats who are seeking medical services at our hospital. Those units will cater for the whole family with bespoke services. We have people coming from the UK, Europe, Sudan, India and the African Continent very satisfied with the care they received and became the ambassadors of our brand.
Our main goal is to position the hospital on the global health map and to become a full-fledged advanced clinical care center for Abu Dhabi and the MENA region, which we believe is already materialized.
