UAE government unveils e-complaint system to report healthcare malpractices

Medical malpractices and administrative errors conducted in private hospitals and clinics in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) can soon be reported via a centralised system, it has been revealed.

Unveiled by the Gulf country’s Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) during GITEX Technology Week 2020, the new e-complaint system is being launched to “to ensure that medical and technical personnel are playing their role in accordance with the policies and regulations of the private health sector,” MoHAP said in a statement.

THE LARGER CONTEXT

The new system is part of MoHAP’s “efforts to upgrade the quality of the healthcare system, innovate smart solutions, adhere to the implementation of quality systems, and to actively take part in shaping public policies and strategies,” said the assistant undersecretary of MoHAP’s Public Health Policy and Licenses department, Amin Hussein Al Amiri.

It will reportedly work by logging the complaint and allowing the transfer of a patient’s medical records to MoHAP “while maintaining full confidentiality”.

Those who log a complaint will be able to track its status at all times until “a final outcome is entered by a neutral medical committee” called the Medical Liability Committee. The committee would “investigate the incident and hear both parties, as well as assess the medical procedures followed by the doctor,” MoHAP continued.

ON THE RECORD

Hessa Mubarak, MoHAP’s Director of Health Empowerment and Compliance added: “The new system is an important asset to the existing procedures, as it eases the handling of complaints for all stakeholders to achieve the health compliance of private medical facilities.

“It allows all individuals, whether residents or visitors, to file a complaint on private health facilities together with all the supporting evidence. A report, then, is submitted to the Medical Licensing Committee to take the appropriate action.”

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