Facilities include valet parking for hospital patients and visitors

Services also include 'call-a-taxi' which is a service that is implemented in incorporation with the RTA.

Dubai, 11 January, 2010: Rashid hospital has recently increased its parking slots by sixty percent to cope with the parking pressures the hospital faces.

In recent years, with the surge in the number of patients and visitors, the parking spaces available were inadequate to meet the growing demand.

The move to add another 384 parking slots and make the total number of parking slots to 1017 shall be sufficient to cater to the present as well as future parking needs, said Yousuf Mohammed Ibrahim, director of finance and administration at Rashid Hospital. "The decision is part of the hospital's strategic plan to ensure we cater to the needs of our customers. We are aware that parking is always a premium at any hospital and therefore we have decided to find ways to expand our parking facilities."

In addition to increasing the parking slots, the hospital management is providing valet parking services to its customers as well.  "We are the only hospital in the UAE to provide this service. We implemented this service after a trial run; a sort of a pilot study to analyse the viability of the service and gauze the reaction of our customers. We were pleased with the response and have decided to implement this service.

"We wanted to follow a multi-tier approach so that customers can choose the option that best suits them. So we increased parking slots, provided valet parking options and also started a taxi service for those patients who do not wish to drive to the hospital," said Ibrahim.

He also mentioned that phone booths have been installed at key locations in the hospital so that customers can make use of this service. "They can directly call Dubai Taxi and request for a cab. We developed this facility in cooperation with the Road and Transportation Authority (RTA)."

Adel Mohamad Hargoos, head of customer relations at the RTA said, "This facility will reduce the waiting time for a cab and it is a dedicated service for Rashid Hospital.  The idea behind this service is to provide our customers with comfort and convenience.

"We have also started the Hayakum(Welcome) service, for disabled and elderly patients.  We provide them with wheelchair facilities and our hospital porters assist patients."

Hargoos said that after developing these facilities, the hospital is now working on ways to further improve them. "For instance, our next step, now that we have provided additional parking slots, is to ensure that each one of them is a shaded parking slot. The project will cost us roughly Dh 450,000 and it is in the pipeline to be implemented shortly."

-Ends-

The DHA:
The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) has been empowered to set policy and strategy for health, and to assure the application of that health policy and strategy. The DHA leads an integrated approach across the spectrum of health, anticipating our future needs and being responsive to users. It will stimulate growth and innovation in the health market, ensuring value for money and quality of services through effective regulation.

The Dubai Health Authority (DHA) structure will ensure that health services are better positioned to meet the demand for better healthcare services in the future. The DHA will work to:

  • Provide a Health Strategy for Dubai that will meet the needs of the predicted growth and change in population.

  • Ensure Public Health is protected and quality of life improved.

  • Ensure partnership between public and private health service providers, bringing together the best international experience to ensure we deliver the best health system possible.

  • Achieve international accreditation of healthcare services delivered across the Emirate by ensuring world-class quality and standards of healthcare.

  • Ensure effective regulation and licensing across the Dubai Health Sector guaranteeing the quality of health services provided.

  • Increase the transparency and accountability of the healthcare system.

  • Drive efficiency so that funding is spent on the most effective healthcare for those who need it.

  • Improve accessibility to the healthcare system and sustainability for the future.

  • Deliver the best training and education opportunities for Dubai healthcare practitioners.

For more information, please contact 
Kamakshi Gupta
Communications Analyst
Institutional Marketing and Communications Department, DHA
klgupta@dha.gov.ae
009714- 2197455

© Press Release 2010