The Healthcare City Model in the Middle East
Kenneth LeDoux, AIA, FASID, IIDA, CID
Vice President,
Ellerbe Becket, Minnesota, USA
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Dubai Healthcare City (DHCC) is being developed by the Government of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Its goal is to provide the highest quality healthcare services to medical care and wellness seekers from the region — and beyond — by creating a world-class cluster of healthcare professionals and service providers located in the heart of Dubai.
The leadership of DHCC aspires to provide state-of-the-art medical care services in selected disciplines, relevant to the problems facing regionally based patients, by creating centers of excellence for medical services, medical education, and life science research and development. They are committed to provide healthcare access to all, to foster academic and professional development and to gain international recognition for the quality of health — including patient privacy, rights and satisfaction.
The “core” of DHCC will consist of an Academic Medical Center, Post Graduate Medical and Nursing Schools, and a Life Science Research Center. The combination of these components will enable Dubai to leapfrog to the forefront of regional medical practices, sustain a position of regional leadership through leading edge education and research and therefore become renowned as a center of global healthcare excellence.
The Academic Medical Center will be complemented by ambulatory and secondary care clusters including a community hospital(s), day clinics, rehabilitation center, diagnostic labs, pharmacies, wellness, sports medicine centers, healthcare products and equipment suppliers — all operating under one quality standard of care.
The total site is comprised of two phases, including disease treatment, prevention and wellness facilities. The first phase is approximately 4.1 million square feet in size. The second phase, dedicated to wellness, will include a mix of housing and hotels, resorts and spas, long term care, and supporting medical clinics and hospitals.
When completed the two phases will form a central gateway for patients and professionals to access a unique healthcare community of specialists medical treatment, leading prevention and rehabilitation, high quality education, research and healthcare services positioning DHCC among the top international healthcare centers. The realisation of DHCC will significantly contribute to the transformation of Dubai into a global hub of the knowledge economy by 2010.
This paper will review the master planning process for both phases of DHCC as well as contrast two Middle Eastern hospitals currently under design.
Keywords: Promotion of Health & Wellness, Integrated Healthcare City
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