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UAE: Quality of healthcare in the country is among the world's best, say residents

Over 23,000 people ranked it second amongst 34 countries for its medical experts, government policies, and healthcare infrastructure

The UAE's residents have rated the country’s healthcare system to be the world’s best for them and their families in the years to come, according to a global survey by Ipsos.

As many as 78 per cent of people in the UAE expect the quality of healthcare that they will receive to improve in the coming years. This is the highest percentage among all the countries surveyed.

Conducted among 23,500 people, the survey results revealed that 77 per cent of UAE residents rate the country's healthcare system as good or very good. This is the second highest percentage in a survey of 34 countries across the world, including the developed countries, reflecting strong trust among UAE residents in the country's healthcare infrastructure and policies being adopted by the government.

The survey found that residents’ trust in the country’s healthcare system has been consistently growing over the years, especially through the pandemic, reaching 77 per cent in 2021 as compared to 73 per cent in 2020 and 54 per cent in 2018.

The UAE’s fight against Covid-19 reached a milestone in June, with 100 per cent of “target groups” vaccinated against the virus. The Department of Health-Abu Dhabi (DoH) also announced that the UAE capital achieved the highest vaccination rate in the world at nearly 100 per cent.

The healthcare survey covered availability, performance and services of doctors, specialist physicians such as surgeons, hospitals, tests for diagnosis and drugs to treat various ailments.

Among the other major countries that were included in the survey were Australia, Belgium, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Malaysia, the USA, China, France, Sweden, Germany and the UK.

Though the number of daily new coronavirus cases in the UAE has dropped significantly, around half of residents – 51 per cent – still perceive coronavirus as the biggest health challenge. Other major healthcare concerns for residents are mental health (24 per cent), obesity (22 per cent), cancer (16 per cent) and stress (15 per cent), the Ipsos survey said.

The survey found that the equality of healthcare services in the UAE is the highest in the world and finding an appointment with a doctor in the area is the easiest in the world. Similarly, the waiting time to get an appointment with a doctor is among the lowest. In addition, residents are largely satisfied with how readily available information is regarding how best to look after their health.

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