Picture for illustrative purposes only. ARCHIVE

Remote or digital medicine has risen in popularity in the UAE, altering the doctor-patient relationship. Local reports noted instances of therapists and other mental health specialists from Dubai connecting online to assist patients from other nations who were having difficulty finding appropriate care in their home. One of these experts, Irish mental health counselor Marie Byrne, conducts frequent Zoom consultations with clients all over the world from the UAE. “It has many advantages, such as offering support in the comfort of familiar surroundings at home,” she noted. "If a patient is upset, they can immediately process what happened somewhere they are comfortable, rather than a clinic. They don't have to drive or travel anywhere either," says the doctor. The Dubai Health Authority introduced Doctor for Every Citizen, a cutting-edge program in December 2019 that allowed Emiratis to get free medical consultations via voice and video chats whenever they needed them. As the pandemic spread, the service was subsequently made available to all residents of Dubai. In Abu Dhabi, the RemoteCare app lets doctors assess and diagnose patients in non-emergency situations, and allows scheduling of appointments and with doctors via voice or video calls or text messaging. Many private healthcare companies also provide services via desktop or mobile devices. Remote consultation and treatment have numerous advantages. Online communication benefits the millions of people who have mobility issues or live distant from their healthcare provider by lowering the danger of illness spreading. A private hospital firm called Mediclinic Middle East published a case study on UAE telemedicine in 2021 and claims that because doctors spend more time getting ready for each online meeting, communication between patients and doctors has increased. A further finding of the study was that telemedicine was "excellent for the home monitoring of chronically ill patients" who were unable to visit for tests. Patients can schedule appointments at times that work for them using remote medicine, and since they have access to services globally, they can get treatment in their native tongue. It also frees medical professionals from having to treat only those patients who can physically go to their office or clinic; instead, they can establish a second patient base abroad. JG/Expat Media
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