US$2 billion hospital for Abu Dhabi next year

posted on 30/01/2012: 98 views

One of Abu Dhabi's flagship healthcare projects, a hospital worth close to US$2 billion (Dh7.34bn), is set to open in the first quarter of next year as the emirate reignites investment in infrastructure and jobs.

Mubadala Healthcare, a unit of Mubadala Development, yesterday announced Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, a US$1.9bn facility being built on Sowwah Island, will open its doors to patients early next year. Mubadala is a strategic investment company owned by the Abu Dhabi Government.

The hospital, modelled on the reputed Cleveland Clinic in the US, will have 364 beds, with the option to increase that level to 490, and is designed to operate five different specialist institutes covering digestive disease, eye, heart and vascular disorders, neurological treatment, and respiratory and critical care.

"Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi will be an outstanding medical facility that brings the very highest international standards of care to patients in Abu Dhabi and the wider region," said Suhail Mahmood Al Ansari, the executive director at Mubadala Healthcare.

"It signifies a long-term investment in our healthcare system that will not only provide the very best care for patients closer to home but also the opportunity for our country's best and brightest to work within Cleveland Clinic's esteemed physician-led practice model."

As one of the major projects in the capital, Cleveland Clinic caps a raft of announcements in the past few days by Abu Dhabi authorities pledging huge investment in development and jobs.

The Abu Dhabi Executive Council finalised a review of developments in the capital, including the resumption of work on the delayed Louvre and Guggenheim museums on Saadiyat Island and a new terminal to support growth at Abu Dhabi International Airport.

On Saturday, ZonesCorp, a government organisation overseeing the development of Abu Dhabi's industrial zones, also announced it would create tens of thousands of jobs in an investment drive across the emirate.

The spending review in the capital included plans for new housing developments, schools and major new road and rail projects, among other things.

Mubadala Healthcare said the outside framework of the 409,234 square metre Cleveland Clinic was finished in October and work had begun on the facade of the building and the inside.

Last year, the hospital appointed a new chief executive, Marc Harrison, who joined as head of Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi after a 12-year career with its sister facility in the US, where he served as the chief medical operations officer.

Aldar was appointed in 2007 as the project's development manager, and is overseeing the design and construction of the hospital.

The amount spent on health care in the UAE is forecast to grow 8.6 per cent this year to Dh31bn on the back of a growing population, new hospitals and advances in medical technology.

Later this quarter, Burjeel Hospital is slated to open in the capital, where it says it will be the largest private facility in Abu Dhabi at nearly 65,000 sq metres. – The National

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