The Emirati Genome Program has added new collection centers through NMC Healthcare’s network in Abu Dhabi as part of the UAE Department of Health’s (DOH) recent guidance to integrate healthcare facilities across the emirate in the program.
The announcement was made at NMC Royal Hospital in Khalifa City, where senior officials toured the facility and officially marked their collaborative efforts. During the event, the attendees acknowledged the important role that genomics plays in defining the future of healthcare in Abu Dhabi and in the UAE.
Sample collection sites for the Emirati Genome Programme now include the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), Biogenix Labs in Masdar City, Al Towayya in Al Ain, Al Ain Convention Centre and CurePlus Medical Centre. The citizens can now participate in the program by visiting NMC Healthcare’s network in Abu Dhabi, which includes NMC Royal Hospital in Khalifa City, Bareen International Hospital, NMC Specialty Hospital in Al Ain, NMC Royal Medical Centre, Abu Dhabi and NMC Royal Women’s Hospital.
Using the samples collected, the Emirati Genome Program will sequence the complete genome of as many citizens as possible to support better prediction, prevention, and treatment of genetic and chronic illnesses
With this program, DOH intends to offer preventive and personalized healthcare for the Emirati population and this will be achieved by understanding citizens’ genetic makeup to deliver the next wave of key innovations that can assure a healthier community for the present and future generations.
Michael Davis, Chief Executive Officer of NMC Healthcare said, “The Emirati genome program is a ground-breaking initiative by the DOH to design targeted healthcare solutions which are precise and will address not only futuristic healthcare needs but also deliver safer healthcare”.
Ashish Koshy CEO – G42 Healthcare
“The more participants the Emirati Genome Program attracts, the more comprehensive the reference data available to medical researchers become. Collaboration is central in the success of the Emirati genome program, with everyone having a key role to play from citizens’ participation to partnering with researchers, academics, and healthcare professionals to analyze the data, in addition to working with regulators to ensure that we follow the correct protocols to create community-wide awareness around the value of genomics.”
G42 Healthcare experts have already built the first anew Emirati reference genome based on DNA samples from 1,000 UAE nationals. The reference genome will be used as a type-standard to study the genetic makeup of citizens.
