Al Jalila Children’s – A Hospital Dedicated To The Region’s Youngest

This concept of a dedicated children’s hospital in the UAE was based on the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai, who rightly believed that children in this region should have an equal opportunity for success in life and their treatment of illnesses shouldn’t be subject to geographical chance. Another of the hospital’s main visions is to eventually have Al Jalila Children’s amongst the top ten paediatric hospitals in the world. 

The hospital’s services focus around the five Centres of Excellence including Heart, Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Kidney, Neurosciences, and Critical Care, and it has a capacity of 200-beds with both outpatient and inpatient services. Children and adolescents have access to 27 outpatient clinic services, in addition to a state-of-the-art Emergency Department that functions 24/7 and specializes in paediatric emergency medicine. 

Notably, Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital provides a model of care that is unique to this region. Pride is taken in the fact that the hospital offers a 360-degree approach to care, so that when a child is seen by a physician at Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital, the physicians ensure that a complete and thorough diagnosis is made. There may be instances where a child needs to be seen by more than one physician, and the hospital is able to ensure a team of physicians is at hand to provide the right diagnosis, all under one roof. 

One of the most important aspects at Al Jalila Children’s is the environment. The hospital prides itself on being a child–friendly facility to ensure that every corner is filled with positivity, whether that includes glow-in-the-dark wallpapers or screens with cartoon characters on the ceilings to provide children with a stress-free setting during scans and x-rays. The hospital design even has open spaces for children to participate in outdoor activities on a regular basis. 

Children can stay in contact with family and friends through interactive touch screen in each room, and even play online games, and access educational portals when required. For those children who may be in the hospital long term, there are numerous facilities that allow children to continue their education, including a dedicated study space in every room and private teachers to assist in continuing their education directly from hospital grounds. 

Technology is used to enhance patient experience, from temperature-controlled rooms, to dedicated play and gaming areas, in order to create a positive hospital experience but also to provide psychosocial support for the patients. This in turn promotes optimal cognitive, emotional, social and physical development for the patient. The rooms even have adjustable LED lighting system to create a soothing ambience, helping patients to relax and support healthy sleep and recovery in comfort. 

Al Jalila Children’s is a SMART hospital, which means they are constantly working to develop world-class digital technology for the benefit of their staff, patients, and parents. One example of this is the in-house pharmacy which hosts one of the first automated dispensing systems in the UAE. 

Every diagnostic equipment in the hospital is specifically for the care of children: for example the X-ray machine used in the hospital is specific to children to ensure they are not subjected to unwanted radiation and repeated scans - and the hospital also hosts a CAP accredited automated laboratory. 

There is an essential difference in the way that adults and children are treated, and as a specialized children’s hospital, Al Jalila’s Children’s is better placed to provide world-class paediatric healthcare for the region’s young patients, with a vast team of globally trained physicians and healthcare professionals who have trained in some of the best children’s hospitals, by offering quality paediatric care to newborns, infants, children, as well as adolescents. 

To know more about the hospital, click here