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UAE: Veteran doctor who served people for over 50 years dies

Pioneers such as Dr Moawia will live on in the memory of Dubai society: Sheikh Maktoum

Published: Wed 13 Apr 2022, 12:06 PM

Updated: Wed 13 Apr 2022, 2:53 PM

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One of UAE’s first doctors has passed away. Dr Moawia Al Shannar spent more than half a century serving and treating people.

Tributes are pouring in for the veteran doctor.

Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, extended his condolences to the family.

In a tweet, Sheikh Maktoum highlighted how the doctor contributed to establishing family medicine in Dubai. “Pioneers such as Dr Moawia will live on in the memory of Dubai society,” tweeted the Deputy Ruler of Dubai.

Abdulrahman bin Mohammad Al Owais, UAE Minister of Health and Prevention, said Dr Moawia was among the first in the UAE to practise medicine in the private sector in the early 1960s.

The minister recalled the deceased's accomplishments, describing him as a role model in the medical field.

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Al Owais extended his heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased, praying to Allah to rest his soul in eternal peace and grant his family patience and solace.

Dr Moawia was buried in Al Quoz Cemetary on Tuesday afternoon after Asr prayers.

He leaves behind wife Dr Zainab Kazim, their two sons and two daughters: Saleh, Omar, Dr Amal and Dr Buthaina.

Early life

Born in 1935, Dr Moawia was born and raised in the city of Nablus, where he completed his school education with honour’s before traveling to Egypt to pursue his studies in medicine at Ain Shams University.

After completing his university education, he moved to the UAE in the early 1960s to start his career at Al Kuwait Hospital in Deira before moving to the hospital’s Ras Al Khaimah branch.

He then returned to Dubai to establish his own clinic in family medicine at Baniyas in Deira, one of the oldest clinics in the UAE.

According to his eldest son Saleh, the late doctor designed the furniture of the clinic himself, using his experience in carpentry, which he practised as a part-time job when he was a school student in Palestine.

Dr Moawia married Dr Zainab Kazim, the first Emirati female doctor and a gynaecologist, who joined his clinic two years later after leaving Al Kuwait Hospital where they had first met. The couple led a long successful journey in family medicine, offering treatment and healthcare to thousands of residents and citizens.

Known for his humanitarian endeavours and devotion to his work, Dr Moawia was up to date with the latest treatment and diagnosis technologies that enabled him to serve patients better.

In a statement, his daughter Buthaina said he never turned away a patient who could not afford healthcare. “He used to offer free treatment to people in need and help the vulnerable,” she said.

sherouk@khaleejtimes.com



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