September 29, 2021:  HE Dr. Yousef Mohammed Al Serkal, Director-General, Emirates Health Services (EHS), said that the EHS is keen to launch concrete projects and initiatives to provide sustainable solutions to cardiovascular disease, explaining that these initiatives aim to improve rates of early screening and rapid diagnosis and provide outstanding curative and therapeutic services, in accordance with best international practices and evidence-based research.  

Al Serkal made the statements on occasion of World Heart Day, observed on 29 September, stressing that the EHS ramps up its efforts to develop health services related to cardiovascular diseases, by enhancing innovation in early detection and awareness-raising programs, as well as providing advanced diagnostic and therapeutic services.

The EHS Director-General pointed to the UAE's support for the WHO's Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of NCDs, underlining the EHS's commitment to improving health services for patients with cardiovascular disease, providing an integrated and sustainable research environment, and encouraging innovation among physicians and technical cadres.

He shed light on the significant milestones of Al Qassimi Hospital, one of the UAE's eminent medical edifices, in performing complex surgeries, most importantly robotic cardiac surgery, thanks to the availability of distinguished national medical cadres, smart infrastructure, and high-end medical equipment.
The hospital also bagged several prestigious accreditations, including the JCI accreditation as a center of excellence in the treatment of atrioventricular block, the JCI accreditation as a center of excellence in the treatment of heart attack, in addition to being MENA's first center applying DYNAMX CORONARY BIOADAPTOR SYSTEM.

Al Qassimi Women's & Children's Hospital has also achieved a 100% success rate in pediatric open-heart surgeries.
 Al Serkal highlighted the EHS's leadership in launching initiatives that contribute to reducing the number of patients with cardiovascular disease. This includes the early detection program for Critical Congenital Heart Disease Screening Program (CCHD) for newborns, the 'Heart Experts' program which aims to prepare students to become awareness ambassadors in their schools, and the 'Safe Hearts' program which targets students in the primary stages and provides early detection services for cardiac-related risk factors.