Demand for nurses, pharmacists to surge

Health workers such as nurses, pharmacists and midwives could play an important role in primary care, especially when demand for these services increases as the population ages. However, this critical role is yet to be recognised here, said a primary care expert.

“All over the world, demographically, the population is changing; we’re all ageing. It is estimated that within the next 20 years, around 70 per cent of the ageing population will be residing in the developing world... and this will create a lot of problems for the whole health system - primary care, secondary care, social services and the like. We should plan very well for it,” said Professor Nabil Sulaiman, head of Family and Community Medicine and Behavioural Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Sharjah.

Rehabilitation centres to increase The UAE will see an increase in rehabilitation centres to cope with future demand, according to Dr Yousif Al Nuaimi from the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Zayed Military Hospital, Abu Dhabi. Speaking at the Middle East Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Conference at the Abu Dhabi Medical Congress and Exhibition, Dr Al Nuaimi highlighted the shortage of healthcare providers across the world. He also emphasised the prevention of future problems while addressing the current functional disability of rehabilitation care in the region. “This is especially pertinent as there is an increase in private and public rehabilitation centres in the UAE. The Abu Dhabi Executive Council has just approved an ‘award for tenders’ to set up the Dh596 million Abu Dhabi Medical Rehabilitation Centre, which will contain 149 beds,” said Dr Al Nuaimi. “Patients in the UAE will benefit the most from information presented at this meeting. Armed with the latest developments and technologies in the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation, rehabilitation healthcare professionals can translate this knowledge into providing patients in the UAE with the most effective treatment plan possible,” he added. Organised by Informa Life Sciences Exhibitions, the seventh edition of Abu Dhabi Medical Congress and Exhibition got under way on Sunday at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre. The event, which concludes on tomorrow, is expected to attract more than 5000 professionals working in the primary healthcare, emergency, patient safety, rehabilitation, and nursing sectors across the region. news@khaleejtimes.com

He was speaking at the Family Medicine Conference during the Abu Dhabi Medical Congress (ADMC) on Sunday. He noted that while health workers in other countries provide primary care, they still remain “under-utilised” in this region.

“Nurse practitioners could do everything that we do except prescribing. You can train them as (health) educators and perhaps they are better than us because they have a much longer time dedicated to patients,” Prof Sulaiman said.

He added that pharmacists can also do a lot of things like screening and measuring blood pressure, and giving better information about medicines.

“Our role will be changing, we have to involve more nurses, pharmacists and midwives... We need more people in the primary care,” Prof Sulaiman said. This is particularly pertinent in the future, when primary care shifts to ambulatory care (e.g. home care) as a result of the ageing population, he added.

According to Prof Sulaiman, with over 30 per cent of the population visiting their family doctors, primary healthcare is the heart of the health system.

With their patient-centered approach, primary physicians are responsible for preventing illnesses and getting patients admitted to hospitals.

They play a major role in screening against diseases, helping patients manage their chronic conditions and adhering to treatment regimes, thus reducing mortality.

Dr Osman El-Labban, family medicine consultant at Al Zahra Hospital in Dubai said: “We are the first line in attending to patients. Due to continuity of care, family doctors know their patients well enough and long enough over time.”

However, one area that needs special attention in the future is mental health. -olivia@khaleejtimes.com