Overview of the Council, Attendees, and Objectives

• The Ministry of Health and Prevention's council for empowering people of determination aimed at eliminating government bureaucracy and adopting a participatory design to improve services and the channels for their delivery. The council also focused on listening to their opinions and contributing to the achievement of the goals of the Government Bureaucracy Elimination Program

• Fifteen participants from the people of determination category, with various disabilities, attended the council to ensure the identification of a broad range of experiences and challenges, as well as to understand their needs and preferences according to the type of disability, aiming to facilitate and enhance their experiences

• The council was attended by the Ministry's first-line leadership and the leaders of the Ministry's strategic partners, with the goal of meeting with the participants, listening to them, responding to their inquiries, and addressing their needs

Main Challenges Identified by the Participants

• 35%Training and preparing specialized employees to deal with people of determination

• 25%Requirements, procedures, and conditions for obtaining services

• 20%Work hours required from people of determination employees

• 20%Readiness of healthcare facilities and infrastructure

Suggestions Discussed by Participants During the Council

• Employee Training

  • Train specialized staff at healthcare facilities to communicate effectively with people of determination

  • Raise awareness and spread educational programs to train and prepare staff on effective communication with people of determination, whether as service users or employees at the facilities

  • Organize interactive workshops to address different scenarios in dealing with people of determination, involving both staff and participants from this category

• Infrastructure Readiness

  • Provide tools that people of determination might need when visiting facilities, such as wheelchairs, crutches, etc., and ensure regular maintenance and cleanliness

  • Apply safety standards and criteria within facilities to ensure a suitable environment for people of determination, such as a unified code for engineers to follow in ensuring the safety of ramps for people of determination

  • Ensure the availability of supporting facilities for receiving people of determination, such as providing a special room for welcoming children with autism, to prepare them in advance for treatment

• Simplification of Conditions

  • Form a dedicated committee to visit schools and follow up on the status of students with disabilities, ensuring their requirements are met and that the educational facilities' infrastructure and facilities are suitable

  • Form a committee to review medical reports for people of determination to expedite approval and avoid delays in receiving treatment

  • Ensure compliance by institutions and organizations with the law that reduces work hours for employees of determination

• Ease of Procedures

  • Proactive renewal of health cards for people of determination

  • Eliminate the repeated submission of documents and reports regarding a disability when it is diagnosed as permanent from birth

  • Connect with systems of the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs, and Border Security to renew health cards automatically when residency permits are renewed

  • "Link health cards with discount cards like "Fazaa" and "Is'aad

The Fastest Improvement Action Based on the Most Frequent and Impactful Challenges

The biggest challenge, affecting 35%, was the lack of qualified and specialized employees to handle people of determination

Improvement Action

The "Inspiring Leader" program was designed and implemented as an accelerated initiative to train frontline employees in healthcare facilities on how to effectively serve people of determination. The program aims to enhance their sense of being valued and important, ensuring their needs are met quickly and their experience is facilitated

Participants' Feedback

• Amal Ahmed (Mobility Impairment)

  • Requested that the Ministry of Health and Prevention translate the medical report from Germany during her treatment journey and have it certified by the responsible health authorities in Germany and the consulate, so it can be recognized by the Ministry of Health and Prevention

• Mather Mohamed (Guardian of a Child with Autism)

  • Expressed difficulty in obtaining a health card for children with autism, as there is no one to assist in providing the necessary information. There is also a lack of clear guidelines or information about how to access services for people of determination

• Robina Quella (Hearing Impairment)

  • Mentioned the difficulty of explaining requests or information due to the absence of a sign language interpreter when applying for services for people of determination at various entities, particularly in healthcare facilities

• Sherine Naeem (Hearing Impairment)

  • Highlighted the renewal of health cards under specific conditions, such as the medical report, which requires time due to the medical committee's approval process, delaying the issuance of the new health card. This process is also linked to residency for expatriates

• Maitha Yusuf (Hearing Impairment)

  • Raised concerns about the repeated diagnostic process at different hospitals and centers to obtain reports faster to send to the school

• Sherine Al-Tawil (Hearing Impairment)

  • Also mentioned the issue of repeated diagnostic tests at different hospitals and centers to expedite obtaining the report to send to the school

• Guardian of Haya Al-Jaber (Hearing Impairment - Down Syndrome)

  • Discussed the challenges in accessing services due to the unavailability of specialists trained to handle people of determination, particularly as she is deaf and requires a sign language interpreter and has a daughter with Down syndrome

• Noora Al Zarooni (Visual Impairment)

  • Expressed difficulty in obtaining appointments at government hospitals

  • Lack of specialists or experienced personnel in healthcare facilities to deal with people of determination.

  • There are no facilities for the blind to read prescriptions on medication boxes.

  • Delays in diagnosing or incorrect diagnoses for people with hearing impairments have led to cases of death.

  • Repeated request for documents to obtain or renew health cards for people of determination, and the disconnection between discounts for people of determination and their health cards, as there is a separate card issued by the Ministry of Community Development for citizens only, which covers some needs of people of determination, and this is different from the health card

• Mahmoud Zahid (Mobility Impairment)

  • Raised the challenge of providing necessary tools for his disability, such as a wheelchair, due to high costs.

  • The health card for people of determination does not cover the cost of tools or essential needs. Additionally, he mentioned that his health card renewal was rejected, and when he inquired, he was told it was due to the medical committee's decision, which delayed his treatment and prescriptions for medicines by at least three months.

  • There is a repeated request for periodic reports for people with permanent disabilities

• Ansaf Al-Nuaimi (Mobility Impairment)

  • Pointed out that the law to reduce work hours is not being enforced by some institutions, even when a report exists.

  • Difficulty of customizing a wheelchair and the high cost, as patients used to rely on "Trust Insurance" and had the wheelchair customized in Abu Dhabi. However, now "Trust Insurance" does not cover the cost.

  • People of determination who are expatriates are not treated in emergencies unless they pay upfront (she mentioned that an exception was made when she spoke up, as she is a UAE citizen)

• Essa Al-Makhshab (Mobility Impairment)

  • Highlighted the insufficient number of parking spaces for people of determination, with many being misused by others and a lack of proper monitoring by security personnel.

  • some ramps at the entrances of healthcare facilities are not properly designed for wheelchair use according to the correct standards. He also mentioned that there is a unified code engineers should follow to ensure the safety of ramps for people of determination