Pact to set up UAE’S first Eye and Tissue Bank
ABU DHABI: Reiterating the Emirate’s position as a leading destination for healthcare across all fronts, the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DOH), the regulator of the healthcare sector in the Emirate, and Us-based Eversight, one of the leading non-profit eye banks in the world, partnered to establish the UAE’S first Eye and Tissue Bank. The agreement will witness the creation, development and operation of a comprehensive and seamless eye transplantation framework in the UAE.
In atendance of Abdulla Bin Mohamed Al Hamed, Chairman of DOH and Carrie Wolverton - Global Development Director at Eversight, the partnership was reflected through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which was signed by Dr. Jamal Mohammed Al Kaabi, Undersecretary of Do hand global director, development at ever sight.
Through this strategic collaboration, DOH and Eversight will set the building blocks across three phases which include programme design, implementation and management. In its early stages, both entities will focus on implementing the necessary arrangements for the Eye and Tissue Bank - Abu Dhabi to serve as an importer for corneas and other eye-related tissues into the region. In addition to integrating the eye and tissue banking programme into the UAE’S National Programme for Organ Donation and Transplantation. For its part, Eversight will develop a comprehensive medical framework to standardise and operate procedures on all clinical functions within the Eye and Tissue Bank - Abu Dhabi in accordance with international best practices in Abu Dhabi.
Dr. Jamal Mohammed Al Kaabi, Undersecretary of the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DOH), said: “Under the directives of our wise leadership, Abu Dhabi continues to partner with leading international bodies to elevate its national healthcare operations across all fronts. We are proud to have partnered with Eversight today to establish yet another impacful programme that contributes to maintaining and enhancing lives in the UAE and beyond. Through this partnership, we aim to further improve healthcare outcomes and facilitate quick and seamless operations for all patients in need of eye-tissue transplantation in the UAE.”
Al Kaabi, added: “We encourage all community members to register their consent to donate organs and tissues post-mortem. While we work limitlessly to reiterate Abu Dhabi’s position as a leading destination for healthcare, we empower our community to partake in the journey to excellence through noble and sentimental actions as this.”