Field hospital set up in 9 days to last 10 years
200-BED AL RAZEEN FIELD HOSPITAL IN ABU DHABI WILL EASE PRESSURE ON CITY FACILITIES FOR COVID-19
Exclusive report on Abu Dhabi’s 200-bed Al Razeen facility
Assistant Editor
On May 13, the day a sprawling 46,500-square-feet Covid-19 field hospital opened in Al Razeen on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi, it had a handful of doctors and nurses present.
It was OK, thought Dr Partha Banerjee — in charge of setting up and managing the facility. The number of patients that were coming in on the initial days was nothing alarming.
The hospital itself had been set up in a record span of nine days from conceptualisation to inauguration, so completing the rest of the set-up and getting all the enlisted medical practitioners in should have reasonably taken another week or so. Instead, by May 15, the hospital was buzzing with activity — thanks to 60 doctors, 150 nurses and 15 paramedics who were deployed to the centre in less than 48 hours.
“This is the speed with which the UAE government works — and the Covid-19 pandemic is the best example of its swift response and humanitarian concern,” said Dr Banerjee, who is also the CEO of Al Mazroui Medical Centre in Abu Dhabi.
Why set up a field hospital in that location?
Strategically located in Al Razeen area, the high-tech facility is nearly the size of a football field and was built by 320 people racing day and night to complete it. The first of five field hospitals by the Abu Dhabi Emergency Crisis and Disasters Committee, it was set up as part of an initiative by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.
While the UAE has deployed enormous medical resources in the fight against Covid-19, Dr Banerjee said, it’s the focus on the humanitarian aspect of the pandemic that makes it stand apart. “There’s virtually no other country that has spent so much to treat its citizens and expats alike, along with sending medical aid to all corners of the world,” he said.
The Abu Dhabi Health Services Co (SEHA) has recently set up a 1,000-bed field hospital at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC) and a 1,200-bed field hospital at the Emirates Humanitarian City, while a third with 1,200 beds will be located at the Dubai Parks and Resorts. The first field hospital in the UAE is managed by the Dubai Health Authority and was opened on April 18 at the Dubai World Trade Centre with a capacity that can be expanded up to 3,000 beds.
The one at Al Razeen has a capacity of 200 beds and 50 advanced ICUs — but is expected to play a vital role in easing the pressure on city-based hospitals and help with faster response to Covid-19 cases in the neighbourhoods.
Who does the new field hospital cater to?
“This facility has been set up for anyone who tests positive for coronavirus with mild to moderate symptoms,” Dr Banerjee said.
“Because of the proximity of the hospital to nearby workers’ accommodations, at the moment most of our patients are industrial workers from the catchment area it is designed to serve. But the profile of the patient doesn’t matter — whether it’s a CEO or a worker, the government is committed to providing the same level of care and attention to everyone battling the virus. In Abu Dhabi, this treatment is being provided to everyone free of cost — whether they are citizens or expats,” he added. The facility is being managed by Dr Banerjee and Bidhan Choudhury, the CEO of medical logistics company MediQ.
How was eveything set up?
“We were called on April 16 to start managing one quarantine center with a capacity to accept 7,000 patients,” says Dr Banerjee. In the beginning it was just one doctor and three nurses, but within a month we now have close to 175 doctors and 400 nurses. We are managing nine quarantine centers and one hospital in Abu Dhabi,” he says.
In total, they are managing a capacity of nearly 13,000 people – including in hotels and other camp sites around the country that have been converted into temporary medical facilities.
Who are the patients?
Explaining the difference between the two types of patients that the field hospital caters to, Dr Banerjee said: “If the patient has tested positive for Covid-19 but is asymptomatic, we generally isolate them here for 14 days. Many of them in fact get absolutely fine after 10 days and are able to go back to a normal life. The complications arise when you get a symptomatic patient with other risk factors, such as cardiac disease, diabetes or compromised immunity. In all such cases, we assess the severity of the underlying risks — in case they are critical, we transfer such patients to dedicated government hospitals that are better equipped to handle them.”
How was the hospital built in nine days?
The doctor said. “Massive resources were mobilised for the project — and everyone from the government ministries to SEHA, Abu Dhabi Police, the Royal Group and other stakeholders worked together with unprecedented speed and cooperation. The National Task Force for Covid-19 always ensured the project was running as per the mandate of the UAE leadership,” he said.
The result is a hospital where the isolation rooms have everything from TV and WiFi to iPads, dedicated headsets, coffee tables and sofas. All non-ICU patients can walk around in the huge corridor and visit the cafe. In addition, the hospital also runs a lab and a pharmacy with high PPE protocol. “Despite being built so quickly, this field hospital can sustain the load for 10 years,” Dr Banerjee said.
What does it take to run a field hospital?
According to the team that set up and is now running the field hospital — comprising Dr Banerjee and Choudhury — the project was possible due to the tremendous support from all agencies involved. The stakeholders ensured the constant supply of critical material including medical equipment, medicines, protective gears, food for the patients, hygiene products, sanitisation and supporting health care professionals.
“The UAE’s mix of nearly 200 nationalities also adds to the complexity of treatment in the country, he said. “Being an Indian, I am very grateful for the support and medical infrastructure that the UAE government has rapidly built to address the challenges posed by COVID-19, and also proud to be able to treat more than 7,000 people from the Indian sub-continent,” he said.
Why is the task critical?
When normal isolation fails for some symptomatic patients, field hospitals typically switch to the ICU. “The ICU facilities here are as good as any speciality hospital, and already some 16 patients have recovered in the past two days,” said Dr Banerjee. “But we don’t know when a symptomatic case might suddenly turn severe,” he said.
Most field hospitals, like the one in Al Razeen, deploy negative air pressure systems that prevent the spread of the virus inside the facility, and setting up such a system is also not an easy task, the doctor said.
320 people worked 24x7 to build the facility in nine days
There’s virtually no other country that has spent so much to treat its citizens and expats alike.”
Dr Partha Banerjee | In charge of hospital