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HE Raja Al Gurg and Dr. David Golan, Harvard Medical School Dean for Graduate Education, at signing in London

Announcing Harvard Medical School Center for Global Health Delivery - Dubai

Center to build a vital regional hub for innovative research and education in Dubai

 Boston, MA (TBD)—Harvard Medical School and Dubai Healthcare City Authority have signed an agreement to cooperate in establishing the Harvard Medical School Center for Global Health Delivery in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.

The centre’s mission will be to increase local and regional health delivery research capacity in the UAE. The new health research and training centre will address some of the most pressing health challenges in Dubai and the region, expanding Dubai’s role as a global hub for scientific and policy discussions related to health care delivery. Funding for the centre will be provided by a four-year grant from the Dubai Harvard Foundation for Medical Research.

The new centre, directed by Salmaan Keshavjee, associate professor of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School and director of the Program in Infectious Disease and Social Change in the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine, will be based at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Academic Medical Center in Dubai Healthcare City.

Attending the signing from Dubai Healthcare City Authority was Her Excellency Raja Al Gurg, Vice-Chairperson of Dubai Healthcare City Authority, who attended on behalf of Chairperson of Dubai Healthcare City Authority Her Royal Highness Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein, wife of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. Also attending the signing from the UAE were Marwan Abedin, CEO of Dubai Healthcare City and Dubai Healthcare City Authority Board Member, and Sehamuddin Galadari, Dubai Healthcare City Authority Board Member and Academic and Research Advisor for the Al Jalila Foundation.

From Harvard Medical School, attendees were David E. Golan, Dean for Graduate Education and Special Advisor for Global Programs, Ajay Singh, Executive Director of the Dubai Harvard Foundation for Medical Research; Salmaan Keshavjee; Robin J. Wheatley, Director of Administration for the Dubai Harvard Foundation for Medical Research; and Jennifer S. Puccetti, Director of Administration for the Harvard Medical School Department of Global Health and Social Medicine.

“The work of the centre will support our long-term commitment to improving the health of all communities within Dubai and enhance our opportunities to lead the region in advancing healthcare research and delivery,” said Her Excellency Raja Al Gurg. “Establishing the centre will foster excellence among students, scientists and health care providers for the ultimate benefit of Dubai and those beyond our region.”

“We are privileged to partner with our colleagues in Dubai to generate best practices in global health delivery and transform these practices into improved health outcomes in Dubai, the region and the world,” said Jeffrey S. Flier, dean of the Faculty of Medicine of Harvard Medical School. “It is our hope that the new centre will catalyse health delivery research and spur innovative solutions that address significant health delivery obstacles.”

The new centre will allow Harvard Medical School and Dubai Healthcare City Authority to stimulate research and education focused on improving the delivery of high-quality health care. Using innovative and multidisciplinary approaches, the centre will study ways to improve outcomes for patients undergoing surgery and for patients receiving care for diabetes and obesity, infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and hepatitis C, and mental health disorders.

The activities of the centre aim to contribute to improved health care delivery; to strengthen the research environment in Dubai, the UAE and the region; and to contribute to regional social and economic development. The centre will also expand training capabilities for regional faculty and students.

“The scope of this project is broad, and its impact promises to be great.  It will provide rigorous training for tomorrow’s scholars and practitioners.  It will also conduct health delivery research, whose findings will influence global health practice as well as policy,” said Alan Garber, provost of Harvard University and the Mallinckrodt Professor of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School.

The work of the centre will be further supported by faculty, fellows, researchers and students from Harvard Medical School and Dubai and the UAE.