Elevating Bahrain public healthcare services

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland-Medical University of Bahrain (RCSI Bahrain) officially launched the state-of-the-art RCSI Bahrain Clinical, and Biomolecular Research Centre located in the Bahrain Oncology Center, in partnership with the King Hamad University Hospital (KHUH).

An official opening ceremony was held under the patronage of His Excellency Lieutenant General Dr Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, Chairman of the Supreme Council of Health.

Dr Shaikh Mohammed bin Abdulla said in his address to the attendees, “The need for the RCSI Bahrain Clinical and Biomolecular Research Centre arose to help address the healthcare issues of the Kingdom of Bahrain and was the visionary idea of Professor Sameer Otoom, President of RCSI Bahrain, and Major General (Dr) Shaikh Salman Al Khalifa, Chief Executive Officer of the King Hamad University Hospital, and has been led by Professor Stephen Atkin, Head of School of Postgraduate Studies and Research at RCSI Bahrain.

“The Research Centre will support the positioning of the Kingdom of Bahrain as a GCC healthcare hub and will bring external funding as well as esteemed recognition to the Kingdom, making it a recognised regional centre of excellence.”

Her Excellency Dr Shaikha Rana bint Isa bin Duaij Al Khalifa, Secretary-General of the Higher Education Council (HEC) and Deputy Chairperson of the Higher Education Council Board of Trustees, said in her address to the attendees: “The research that will be undertaken here at the RCSI Bahrain Clinical and Biomolecular Research Centre, and the outcomes that its findings will produce will not only result in cheaper and more efficient means of curing some of the most prevalent diseases, but it will also lessen the financial and logistical burdens on our public healthcare system, thereby elevating the quality of services provided and advancing the quality of life of Bahrainis and residents alike.

“Medical research, like most forms of scientific research, is not only essential for the development of a society’s foundation, cornerstones of education and national qualifications, but it is also one of the key drivers that underpin the Bahrain Vision 2030.