Hospital's award for heart disease treatment

A hospital becomes one of only a dozen in the world to receive an award for its treatment of heart patients.

Abu Dhabi // A hospital has become one of only a dozen in the world to receive an award for its treatment of heart patients. Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC) was awarded the title of Cycle III Chest Pain Centre by the Society of Chest Pain Centres, a US-based non-profit group dedicated to boosting heart disease treatment. It is the first time the award has gone to a hospital outside the US.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the UAE, with six to 12 per cent of the population suffering from it, according to hospital officials. A total of 1,198 patients were released from Sheikh Khalifa Medical City last year after being treated for coronary artery disease. "Looking at the first five weeks of 2009, we have witnessed a 10 per cent increase in the number of acute coronary syndrome and chest pain cases received at our emergency department," said Dr Norbert Augustin, chairman of the Cardiac Sciences Institute, part of Sheikh Khalifa Medical City.

Inspectors visited the hospital, which is owned and operated by the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company, Seha, last month. "We are very proud of this accomplishment and would like to congratulate the employees at SKMC whose hard work and dedication to excellence helped achieve this honour," said Seha's chairman, Saif al Qubaisi. Dr Ali Abdulkarim al Obaidli, Seha's clinical affairs director, added: "The accreditation status granted from the Society of Chest Pain Centre ensures that [the hospital] is consistently delivering the highest standards of quality services and has attained a high level of patient satisfaction."