The Ministry of Health and Prevention, MoHAP, represented by the Training & Development Center, had participated in the Health Simulation Week, 14 – 20 September, in cooperation with the Society for Simulation Healthcare.

MoHAP’s participation aimed to underline the importance of simulation in healthcare in developing the skills of medical professionals across the country and to encourage the integration of simulation into the education and training curriculum of health-related institutions.

On this occasion, the Training & Development Center had prepared a number of innovative events and competitions aimed at supporting the front line of defense and training them on health tech matters to deal with Covid-19 challenges.

Among these activities was training on an innovative device to improve resuscitation quality at Al Qassimi Hospital Sharjah, in addition to organizing simulation events in Kuwait Hospital, Wasit Clinic in Sharjah, Al Hamidiyah Clinic in Ajman, Umm Al Quwain Hospital, Saqr Hospital in Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah Hospital, using the mobile simulation unit. It was a training ambulance using virtual patients and electronic toys for high-precision simulation to support the readiness of hospitals and clinics to deal with critical cases, while the on-site simulation provides training on the systems of the different health facilities.

Continuous medical training

HE Awad Saghir Al Ketbi, Assistant Undersecretary of the Support Services Sector, MoHAP, said: “Celebrating the Healthcare Simulation Week aimed to raise the efficiency of medical professionals in hospitals, clinics, and field hospitals, enhance their skills in accordance with best health practices and protocols, and to support continuous training and patient-centered medical care.”

“Utilizing simulation technologies in healthcare supports the MoHAP’s efforts to keep pace with the new treatment methods in innovative and sustainable ways and to enhance and develop training programs for medical professionals, in line with MoHAP Innovation Strategy 2019 – 2021,”

Al Ketbi commended the ambitious vision of the wise leadership in terms of reinforcing the UAE's position as a pioneering global model in the proactive confrontation of future challenges and a leading global destination for a sustainable future in smart healthcare. This is achieved by reinventing health services to improve readiness for future diseases, integrating technology into diagnostic and treatment methods, making use of analytical data, and enhancing the advanced preparedness to diseases and epidemics.

Raising competence of medical professionals

Saqr Alhemeiri, Director of Training & Development Center and Chief Innovation Officer, pointed to the importance of simulation in healthcare in improving the skills of medical professionals to deal with all the scenarios they face, especially when handling Covid-19 cases, by enhancing simulation accuracy and providing clinical practices that match reality.

“Throughout the week, the Center launched a number of innovative competitions, including the simulation technology competition, which aimed to develop the skills of the maintenance and safety staff of MoHAP’s specialized simulation devices,”

There was also the moulage makeup competition which aimed to discover artistic talents among MoHAP employees. The competition depended on shooting fake injuries using accessible and available materials.

This was in addition to organizing the journal club - a discussion on a recent scientific article in the medical simulation field. It aimed to find out more about the latest practices and develop the skills of reviewing and evaluating scientific publications among the participants. The activities also aimed to explore the prospects of scientific research in the health education field using simulation across the country.

CPR skills training

Also, MoHAP officially launched the smart self-training device (Resuscitation Quality Improvement; RQI), an innovative device for training on cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) skills using smart feedback devices to provide a mechanism for self-training on these skills, with no need for the trainer to be present during the training process.

Other activities highlighted the importance of the precautionary measures to prevent epidemics in the continuation of the training process, including continuous sterilization and use of face masks and virtual communication, while the “Maharati” E-learning system was used in organizing the training process.

It is worth noting that MoHAP’s Training & Development Center is an internationally accredited center by the American Heart Association and the European Resuscitation Council for training using health simulation.