Department of Health Abu Dhabi and Abu Dhabi Public Health Center - wins big at the Middle East Technology Excellence Awards 2021

The Department won in the categories of Automation for Istijaba Platform and Information Management for Malaffi Connecting Healthcare.

The Department of Health (DOH) Abu Dhabi bagged two major awards at the Asian Business Review’s Middle East Technology Excellence Awards 2021. It was recognised for innovations that have positively impacted the healthcare industry in the emirate.

Amongst these is the Malaffi Connecting Healthcare, the first health information exchange in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region launched in January 2019. The said technology won the Information Management - Non-Profit or Government Organisations category.

Malaffi safely and securely connects the public and private healthcare providers by enabling the meaningful, real-time exchange of important patient health information between healthcare providers, creating a centralised database of unified patient records and allowing for improved healthcare quality and patient outcomes.

With the ability to provide instant access to patients’ longitudinal medical files, Malaffi can facilitate better-informed clinical decisions, enhance coordination and transition of care, reduce unnecessary duplication of tests and procedures, reduce the risk of medical errors, and improve patient safety and experience.

The centralised repository of clinical information provides the DOH with critical insights that help better regulate the sector and manage public and population health programs. Using advanced artificial intelligence (AI) technologies such as machine learning and predictive modelling, Malaffi provides population health risk insights used to improve wellbeing and control healthcare costs.

As of June 2021, DOH has achieved extraordinary progress with almost 31,000 end-users accessing Malaffi and 100% of the emirate of Abu Dhabi’s healthcare facilities being connected to the platform.

Malaffi has consistently achieved a very high adoption rate by the clinicians of around 35%, which is much higher compared to the usual benchmark of around 15%. This includes users with different clinical roles and specialities.

Meanwhile, the Istijaba Platform was also launched in 2019 by the Center of Emergency Preparedness and Response as part of DOH. Leveraging on AI, the platform was developed to manage the day-to-day manual collecting of important information related to the healthcare sector resources via, emails, landline, and faxes.

The Istijaba Platform was developed to manage all emergency operation activities, including live monitoring of healthcare sector resources across all the Emirate of Abu Dhabi as well as acting as two-way communication and early warning system.

Additionally, the platform serves as an important tool to provide the necessary information to decision-makers, allowing them to effectively manage the crisis. Its functions assist in the real-time reporting of bed occupancy rates, the possibility of increasing the capacity in hospitals, the number of available blood units, the readiness of ambulances and transporting the injured, and verifying the preparation of medical staff in various specialities.

The Istijaba Platform has enhanced the means of cooperation and joint action between Abu Dhabi healthcare facilities by allowing the exchange of statistics and vital information between them as needed. The platform was launched prior to the pandemic and was a pivotal tool in Abu Dhabi’s outstanding performance and resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic.

It has also allowed the Department of Health and Abu Dhabi Public Health Center to receive another award, the Automation - Non-Profit or Government Organisations category under the same title. They have noted that additional modules have been accessed on the platform to pass down the learnings to enhance the system capability.

The Asian Business Review’s Middle East Technology Excellence Awards 2021 recognises outstanding companies and organisations with successful groundbreaking projects, digital services, reimagined strategies, and technological initiatives.