Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is set to become home to an 80 - 100 bed world-class hospital facility and several clinics which will all be fully integrated with King’s College Hospital’s facilities in London.
This follows on from the successful launch of King’s College Hospital’s flagship Abu Dhabi clinic, which recently celebrated its first anniversary.
UK-based Ashmore Group plc will act as the investment manager for the $200 million project. Al Tayer Group and Dubai Investments PJSC are local equity partners in the project.
Rt Hon Alistair Burt, Minister of State for Community and Social Care at the Department of Health says: “The UK public and private healthcare system is considered among the top in the world. We are extremely excited to expand British healthcare internationally, particularly within the UAE.
“Our long-standing ties with the UAE will continue to strengthen with the presence of King’s College Hospital and Clinics in Dubai, combined with the specialist emerging markets investment management experience of Ashmore Group plc.”
The first of the facilities to open towards the end of 2016 and in 2017 will be a number of clinics. These will be followed by the 80 -100 bed multi-specialty King’s College Hospital Dubai scheduled to open in 2018. The hospital will offer four main specialties as well as acute and general medical services: paediatrics, endocrinology, orthopaedics, obstetrics and gynaecology.
In line with the existing operating model of the Abu Dhabi clinic, all staff and services will be fully integrated with King’s College Hospital London to provide quality, evidence-based healthcare to the UAE. A significant proportion of experienced clinicians will be joining Kings College Hospital Dubai from the UK.
Ties between King’s College Hospital and the UAE originate from 1979, when a donation from His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, former President of the UAE, helped establish King’s liver research centre, now amongst the top three liver specialist centres in the world.
Over the years, thousands of patients from the UAE have received treatment at the London hospital. The decision to bring its world-class quality to the UAE minimises the necessity for outbound medical travel for Emirati patients.
It has also been announced that King’s College Hospital has become the strategic clinical partner for the first Indo UK Institute of Health in New Chandigarh. Backed by up to £100m in private investment, the project is the first of a proposed 11 Indo UK Institutes of Health which will see high quality hospitals, nursing schools and medical colleges developed across India.
George Freeman MP, Minister for Life Sciences, welcomed the announcement, saying: “This £100m collaboration, a world first, is a sign of the huge global export market for the UK healthcare and life sciences sector. I would encourage other UK companies, academic institutions and NHS organisations to work with Healthcare UK to engage in the Indo UK Institutes for Health project.”
