DHA to form committee to regulate organ transplantation in Dubai
The Dubai Health Authority, DHA, is in the process of forming a local committee to regulate the transport and transplantation of organs and tissues in Dubai. The committee will be responsible for standardising and regulating the process of organ transplantation in accordance with the regulations and provisions stipulated in Federal Law No. 05 of 2016 on regulating the transfer and transplantation of organs and tissues. DHA hosted a workshop to share experiences and learn about the best practices and latest developments in organ transplantation. The workshop was held with the participation of the National Committee for Organ Transplantation, chaired by Dr Ali Abdulkarim Al Obeidli and attended by representatives of the Donation and Transplantation Institute in Barcelona - Spain, headed by Professor Francesco Procaccio on Tuesday, 6th November in Rashid Hospital.
Dr Marwan Al Mulla, CEO of the Health Regulation Sector at the DHA praised the efforts of all relevant health authorities that working on preparing a comprehensive national programme for organ donation and transplantation. He said that producing the comprehensive programme will relieve the pain of patients and reduce the burden on the health sector, especially when it comes to chronic cases that will be treated according to legislation and standards based on international practices.
More than 70 medical and technical teams specialising in intensive and emergency care from both public and private sector hospitals in Dubai attended the scientific workshop to exchange expertise and experiences in order to learn about the latest developments in organ transplantation programmes, especially in Spain.
Dr Al Obaidli said the workshop included an overview of the national organ transplantation programme in the UAE. Other topics discussed included: the objectives of organising the procedures and organ transplants, international best practices and standard procedures for organ donation and the activation of the brain death protocol in the UAE.
He added that the workshop aims to ensure that the UAE follows uniform standards across all its medical facilities, raises the level of cooperation between intensive care units, enable the largest number of people to donate, provides the required support for hospitals to donate and builds relationships between hospitals in the UAE.
The workshop also reviewed the successes of the national programme, including activation of the brain death protocol. Since the launch of the national programme, lives of 30 patients with organ failure were saved as they received organ donations from nine brain dead donors. The organs included the cultivation of the heart, lungs, liver, pancreas, and kidneys thus, enabling those who wish to donate to exercise their right to save the lives of others.
It was highlighted that the success of organ transplantation will provide one of the most important solutions to a number of core diseases, such as kidney failure and liver failure, reflecting positively on the UAE's global position in the medical field in the future. It will also enable the UAE to become an example to be followed in the application of best international practices and the latest healthcare standards.
Dr Hanan Obaid, Director of the Health Policies and Standards Department pointed out that the health regulation sector is in the process of forming a local committee to regulate the transport and transplantation of organs and tissues in the Emirate of Dubai. The committee will standardise and regulate the process of organ transplantation in accordance with the regulations and provisions stipulated in Federal Law No. 05 of 2016 on regulating the transfer and transplantation of organs and tissues, which provides an integrated legislative system for organ transplantation with the criteria for organ donation and the need to respect specific conditions.
Dr Obaid also referred to Federal Law No. 05 of 2016 issued by President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, on regulating the transfer and transplantation of human organs and tissues. She also referred to the Ministerial Resolution No. 550 of 2017 and the rules and regulations pertaining to what constitutes brain death and the responsibility of local regulatory health authorities in the application of legislation and the implementation of its provisions.
