The Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DoH) has signed an MoU with Roche Middle East in order to enhance innovation, health services, and treatment available to patients in the Emirate.
Under the MoU, the two entities will advance critical research using real-world data to study and assess the spinal muscular atrophy burden in Abu Dhabi, as well as assess the potential conduction of research and the facilitation of real-world data collection to monitor Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) disease.
A key priority will be to support real-world data research and the development of data collection frameworks for the agreed-upon disease areas, to enable DoH to address local and regional health needs, challenges, and burdens.
The MoU features two key pillars of collaboration that will benefit patients in Abu Dhabi. Firstly, the two entities will work together to support the evolution of real-world data collection frameworks in Abu Dhabi, and the subsequent potential evidence-generation activities that are targeted to monitor rare and priority diseases as assigned by DoH and agreed upon by Roche.
Dr. Asma Ibrahim Al Mannaei, Executive Director of the Research and Innovation Centre at the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi said that, “Abu Dhabi has a track record of excellence and fast-growing, future-forward, data-enabled services. Serving as a hub for healthcare data, Abu Dhabi’s substantial computing power enables it to harness the potential within this data, transforming it into valuable information. This, in turn, allows us to innovate and develop novel approaches to shift healthcare towards prediction, prevention, and treatment, thereby accelerating the future of healthcare, not only for Abu Dhabi but for the global community.”
Al Mannaei added that through international collaborations, Abu Dhabi seeks to lead research groups supported by global partners to explore the resilience and sustainability of the healthcare sector worldwide as well as expand access to quality care for patients around the world.
Enhancing DoH’s ability to track and monitor outcomes of therapies will support DoH in making informed clinical and policy decisions for better optimization of patient outcomes. Furthermore, DoH and Roche will strengthen the research network across Abu Dhabi and improve accrual for potential clinical trials.
