The UAE Health Travel Causes and Health System

The United Arab Emirates Health Travel Causes and Health System

Since the oil boom and the flood of petrodolars, healthcare standards have grown steadily in the United Arab Emirates. In spite of this fact, wealthy individuals still choose to travel abroad for medical care. We have looked through a few of the issues that the UAE faces in striving to provide the very best medical care for its citizens.

National Health Issues:

1. Cardiovascular Diseases, mainly:

• Heart diseases.
• Hypertension.
• Dyslipidemia.

2. Congenital anomalies, birth defects

3. Endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases:

• Diabetes.
• Obesity 

4.  Respiratory diseases:

• Asthma & allergies
• Influenza

5. Cancer mainly:

• Breast cancer.
• Prostate cancer
• Colon cancer
• Lymphoma cancer

6. Anemia, mainly:

• Thalassemia.
• Iron deficiency anemia.
• Sickle cell anemia.

7.Musculoskeletal: Osteoporosis

8. Digestive system:

• GERD
• Peptic & duodenal ulcers

9. Mental & behavioral disorders:

• Suicide.
• Anxiety disorder

10. Infectious diseases prevention:

• Hepatitis B, C.
• Parasitic diseases.

11. Trauma, injuries & poisons.

Gross national income per capita: $ 47890

Life expectancy at birth: 75/77

Total expenditure on health per capita: $ 1732

Risk factors: Alcohol, Road traffic injuries, Tobacco

Mortality and burden of disease: cardiovascular diseases, cancer, congenital anomalies, diabetes mellitus.

(Source: World Health Organization)(2012 est.)

Reasons For Medical Tourism From The UAE:

Although the UAE continues to improve it's medical system and has reached a fairly advanced level in medical technology updates, individuals from the UAE continue to travel for healthcare to:

• Germany;
• Thailand;
• UK;
• India
• USA;
• Singapore.

Main reasons for traveling abroad for healthcare:

• Cancer;
• Bones and joints diseases;
• Cardiovascular diseases;
• Ophthalmology;
• Neurosurgery;
• General surgery;
• Nephrology.

While some UAE patients are choosing India for advanced treatment for cancer or cardiovascular diseases, because it is more affordable to get treated there, there is a part of UAE nationals that choose more exclusive destinations such as Germany and the US to get access to the most advanced and prestigeous doctors and treatments.

On the other hand, the UAE health system is trying to provide the above treatments and specialty care to its patients, by continuously improving the Dubai Healthcare City, a hospital free zone that offers international-standard advanced private health care and provides an academic medical training center.

The global Medical Tourism trends are currently very dynamic and are pushing to further development of the UAE Health System. We are looking forward to see how they will evolve to the patient's benefit.

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