Quality shortfall in Middle East hospitals to be addressed at Hospital Build conference
International standards needed at all levels of hospital planning, technology and management in the Middle East.
- (1888PressRelease) May 26, 2011 - Dubai, UAE: The increasing healthcare expenditure in the Middle East highlights the need for better healthcare infrastructure as well as the role played by hospital consultants in understanding and implementing quality standards and accreditation of hospitals. The race for defining and controlling the standards for the Middle East region healthcare accreditation is still yet to be won as Western guidelines for healthcare accreditation must be amended to suit cultural and religious needs of the Middle East region.
According to Dr. Rashi Agarwal, Director of Praxis Healthcare Consultancy based in Mumbai, accreditation leads to better patient care and inculcates a culture of patient safety and risk reduction practices. Not only does it improve clinical outcomes, but it also assesses and shows improvement in all aspects of management and business operations leading to an increase in the bottom line.
Praxis Healthcare Consultancy will be exhibiting at the 3rd Hospital Build Middle East Exhibition and Congress which will run from 13 - 15 June 2011 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Quality Standards & Accreditation is a three-day conference held during Hospital Build 2011 which will assess the importance of setting the appropriate organisational structure to achieve successful accreditation within an organisation, address the challenge of providing client-centered healthcare within the GCC and help to build a culture of safety to establish reliable healthcare organisations.
"The cost of poor quality in hospitals and healthcare facilities leads to higher infection rates, medical errors, and sicker patients, which in turn leads to longer length of stay, lower productivity and lower revenues," says Dr Agarwal. "Tarnished hospital reputation is another by-product."
"Acceptability, accessibility, accountability and allocative efficiency are the biggest challenges in providing quality healthcare, not only in the Middle East, but all over the world. These can be overcome only through correct education and training with involvement of senior management and clinical staff," she continues.
Discussing the accreditation journey, Dr Agarwal explained that the best way to start the process is by educating leaders and managers of the benefits, advantages, process, timeline, etc. of accreditation. This is followed by a baseline assessment to evaluate the current status of the hospital with regards to the accreditation standards and then a detailed action plan is developed. A mock survey is carried out by a third party and corrections are made before the final survey. The accreditation process will be successful only with complete contribution at all levels of management and participation by clinicians at the hospital.
"Apt education and training is the best tool for a successful process," says Dr Agarwal.
The Hospital Build Middle East Congress offers a multi-track conference series consisting of seven leading conferences which will address hospital design and upgrade, surgery management, imaging and diagnostics management, healthcare management, integrating business with healthcare technology, and the flagship Leaders in Healthcare as well as, of course, quality standards and accreditation.
The Hospital Build Middle East Exhibition 2011 is set to double in size with more than 100 exhibitors covering 3,000sqm of exhibition floor space, with an estimated 3,500 visitors.
"Hospital Build has given a good platform to several exhibitors in the past to display their products and services and generate relevant business opportunities. We aim to use our experience and our team of internationally trained experts to collaborate with healthcare facilities in the Middle East to bring about international standards at all levels of hospital planning, technology and management in areas of architectural design, latest equipment, skilled human resource and staffing, efficient operational policies, quality markers, profitable business models, and overall improved patient care," says Dr Agarwal.
For information about Hospital Build Middle East Exhibition and Congress, please call +971 3365161 or visit www.hospitalbuild-me.com.
About IIR Middle East:
For more information about IIR Middle East, please visit www.iirme.com or www.informaexhibitions.com.
About Praxis:
For more information about Praxis, please visit www.praxishc.com.
For media enquiries please contact:
Inga Stevens
PR Manager
Life Science Division
IIR Middle East
T: +971 4 407 2743
F: +971 4 336 4021
inga.stevens ( @ ) iirme dot com
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