Masterclasses
Special Forum Opening Masterclass (in partnership with The National Rehabilitation Center - Emirate of Abu Dhabi)
Investing in meeting the health challenges of the GCC – The case for focusing on reducing real disease burden Healthy populations facilitate sustainable economic growth. Healthcare services tend to focus on high prevalence diseases, often neglecting conditions which are "stigmatized" or niche, especially where public knowledge of these health challenges is limited. The concept of disease burden - in terms of the real price that society pays through direct and indirect economic costs - regardless of prevalence and incidence, remains under-utilized. This masterclass looks at how a highly stigmatized disease/condition associated with scarce information is associated with a significant disease burden. Research has quantified the impact of drug abuse on the community at large as translating to a cost of approximately 2% of GDP. Although such work has several limitations, it provides evidence of a tangible and substantial drug abuse disease burden to society as a whole. The discussants will review what works in terms of investment in the community at large to reduce the burden of drug abuse; focusing on community development, prevention and education, harm-reduction, treatment and rehabilitation. This session provides a voice to policy makers, practitioners and public and private sectors who are seeking to join efforts in designing a comprehensive approach to drug abuse.
Key areas covered include:
- Burden of disease associated with drug abuse and societal and economic impact
- Best-practice in community-based prevention and management of drug abuse
- Public policy challenge of integrating drug abuse prevention and treatment into health system
- Developing collaboration between key stakeholders in the drug abuse arena
Welcome and Opening Comments
HE Hamad Abdallah Al Ghaferi Director General of the National Rehabilitation Center – Emirate of Abu Dhabi
Masterclass Leaders
Philippe Chossegros Network GT69, Lyon, France
Hisham Al Arabi National Rehabilitation Center – Emirate of Abu Dhabi
Healthcare Services Masterclass
The human resource challenges of quality - Improving healthcare services quality in the face of increasing demand and constrained resources - the role of training, accreditation and capacity development Arab countries, like much of the world, are experiencing demographic, payment, and cultural shifts that are rapidly increasing the demand for and cost of healthcare. Yet capacity, in terms of of trained, quality healthcare providers, is not substantially increasing. World-wide demand has and will encourage many healthcare organizations to recruit personnel with wide variations in skill levels. Technical skills, experience and competency (as managers and healthcare professionals) are fundamental concerns for healthcare providers, payers, insurers, certification bodies, and most importantly - healthcare consumers (or patients). It is not enough to build hospitals and equip them with sophisticated technologies, without substantial investment in human capital by creating proper systems, training, governance and management expertise to drive performance and quality. This masterclass aims to explore the key factors and challenges in obtaining and maintaining quality healthcare personnel, including the optimal deployment of training and accreditation, with a particular focus on regions that are experiencing substantial expansion in their hospital sectors.
Key areas covered include:
- Strengthening leadership and strategic management: a regional context
- The evolving regulatory, social and reimbursement impact on demand and quality of personnel
- The benefits of reducing medical errors through promoting professional excellence
- Building capacity as healthcare becomes more sophisticated – the role of training and accreditation
Masterclass Leader
Stephen Walston | School of Public Health Department of Health Administration and Policy Executive Education, University of Oklahoma and TSW American Institute of Leadership & Policy
Discussants
Abdul Karim Al Fahim | Mafraq Hospital, Abu Dhabi
Oliver Tattan | The Regulated Industry Group, Ireland
Mohan Chellapa | Johns Hopkins Medicine International
Tom Kass | EFG International, Switzerland
Technology Transfer Masterclass
Implementing Profitable, Sustainable and Appropriate Technology Transfer – Addressing Urgent Health Challenges through Innovative Financing The lifeblood of a good health system is continuous improvement of existing technologies and services as well as the introduction of new and appropriate technologies from abroad (innovation, knowledge and technology transfer). The recent history of the healthcare sector is characterized by a high pace of innovation in diagnosis and treatment. Emerging market countries need to access new technology, but under terms and conditions that generate the maximum benefit for the patient or healthcare consumer. Innovation must diffuse from the industrialized to the developing world (and more recently from the developing to the industrialized world), yet there needs to be a recognition that technology alone is not a panacea. This masterclass is structured to provide participants with a thorough understanding of various modes of technology transfer and their effectiveness. It will look at initiatives around the globe and give participants an insight into the do’s and don’ts of technology transfer.
Key areas covered include:
- The role of innovation clusters
- Technology assessment and services – the role of the policy maker
- Regulatory framework and intellectual property issues
- International networking strategies
- Public-private collaboration models
Masterclass Leader
Stephan J. Mallenbaum | Greenberg Traurig, LLP
