Healthpoint hosts Sports Medicine meet

EMIRATES BUSINESS

Healthpoint Hospital, a state-of-the-art multi-specialty hospital with the region’s most comprehensive sports medicine and physiotherapy offerings, hosted its first-ever Sports Medicine conference in Abu Dhabi.
The conference was held in collaboration with Manchester City Football Club at Yas Viceroy Abu Dhabi, bringing together some of the world’s foremost authorities in sports medicine from the UK, Portugal, Turkey and the UAE to discuss the latest developments and innovative treatment options in the field of sports medicine.
The hospital is part of Mubadala’s network of world-class healthcare providers and Regional Healthcare Partner to Manchester City Football Club.
Sports Medicine and its related areas of practice, such as physiotherapy and rehabilitation, are rapidly developing healthcare sectors in the UAE and the region. Increasing demand for sports medicine services in the region is driving a need for specialty medical and scientific knowledge, as well as for world-class skills amongst local physiotherapists, general practitioners and other medical professionals who care for athletes on a professional, semi-professional and amateur level. This first of a kind Regional Healthcare Partnership between Healthpoint Hospital and Manchester City Football Club aims to facilitate knowledge transfer in treating athletes, ultimately elevating the quality of care offered to athletes in the region.
Dr. Nader Darwich, Healthpoint Hospital’s Medical Director and Head of Abu Dhabi Knee & Sports Medicine Centre, opened the conference by addressing Abu Dhabi’s vision to create a competitive global sport centre of excellence, including a supporting sports medicine infrastructure that incorporates the latest healthcare and technology trends. He was joined by Max Sala, Head of Sports Medicine – Manchester City Football Club First Team; Dr. JoãoEspregueira-Mendes, Chairman and Professor of the Orthopedic Department of Minho University and President of the European Society of Sports Traumatology, Knee Surgery and Arthroscopy (ESSKA) and other international and regional leaders in sports medicine.
“Healthpoint’s partnership with the internationally renowned Manchester City Football Club and its best-in-class sports medicine research and development operations represents an important step in driving forward the industry and
the sports medicine field in Abu Dhabi and the region, an area which is rapidly growing,” commented Dr. Darwich.
Dr. Max Sala commented: ‘’It was a pleasure for me to attend this event on behalf of Manchester City Football Club and I was so pleased to contribute to today’s discussions, which offered the delegates a unique and engaging platform to share sports medicine knowledge and best practice. Since partnering with Healthpoint in 2014 we have seen this partnership grow, enabling both the Club and Healthpoint to deliver the highest quality care to athletes in the UAE and beyond.”
Dr. Mai Al Jaber, Deputy Medical Director and Head of the Women’s Wellness Initiative at Healthpoint Hospital, stressed the importance of organizing specialized conferences such as this to attract the best national and international experts to exchange experiences and to review the latest scientific research and studies that contribute to the advancement of medical services for patients. “The role of the conference is to bring together world-leading speakers and medical professionals to share their knowledge and experiences, allowing the knowledge transfer that the UAE’s sports medicine professionals and physiotherapists can take back to their facilities and patients on the ground to
make a real difference straight away. This also advances the Government’s efforts to reduce the need for athletes across the UAE to travel abroad for treatment.”
The conference is one in a series of clinical collaborations between Healthpoint Hospital and Manchester City Football Club, following Healthpoint’s visit to the City Football Academy in October 2015 to understand the Club’s protocols and procedures for treating its male and female Club athletes.