Sharjah: A new 120-bed multi-speciality hospital, called Medcare Hospital in Sharjah, was officially launched on Thursday, featuring an online consultation service for follow-ups.

The private hospital, part of the Medcare hospital chain operated by Aster DM Healthcare, was formally inaugurated by Shaikh Sultan Bin Mohammad Bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Sharjah. He was accompanied by Shaikh Abdullah Bin Salem Bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah.

Also present were Dr Ameen Hussain Al Amiri, assistant undersecretary of the Ministry of Health and Prevention for public health policy; other officials from health authorities and Aster; and Navdeep Singh Suri, Indian Ambassador to the UAE.

The Crown Prince and guests toured the hospital and watched a video about the facility, located on King Faisal Street.

A unique service of the new hospital, officials said, is an online consultation option for follow-ups. If the doctor decides a patient does not have to be present in the hospital for a follow-up, the consultation takes place over video conferencing like Skype.

Dr Azad Moopen, founder, chairman and managing director of Aster DM Healthcare, said the plan is to make the online service — called eStisharati (My Consultancy) — available to other Aster health facilities as well, pending approval from authorities. Post-operative patients can benefit from this facility and interact via video conferencing with their treating doctor within seven days from the date of their surgical procedure.

Dr Moopen added that the system will save time, pointing out that a hospital visit can take hours or even half a day in some cases. “Is this required? It is not,” he said, drawing parallels to the banking and air travel sectors as examples where hardly anyone visits their teller or agent anymore as almost all services have migrated online.

Alisha Moopen, executive director and CEO of hospitals and clinics at Aster DM Healthcare, said the online service also does away with the stress of traffic, and by doing so, contributes to people’s health. She said traffic stress has “adverse health impact” on people, playing a part in hypertension and obesity prevalence.

Alisha, who is Dr Moopen’s daughter, added: “One of the major things which we realised when we were coming to Sharjah is that the big problem here is the traffic. Now how can we be a socially responsible health care organisation and try to make a difference in that? With this problem in mind, we have introduced eStisharati. We want to make life easier.”

She continued: “We want you to come to the doctor [initially]. But when you go back, when you have your follow up, we want to make it as convenient as possible for you.” Alisha said after three days of the initial consultation, the hospital confirms a Skype consultation between the patient and doctor. Such a service is unique to the region and is the first one in Sharjah, Alisha added.

During a tour of the hospital, staff at the event told Gulf News that a GP consultation costs around Dh275, a specialist consultation costs around Dh415 and a visit to a consultant doctor costs around Dh470. When asked during a question-and-answer session at the event regarding the use of the Dubai-issued Essential Benefit Plan health insurance coverage in Sharjah, Dr Moopen said it — and other plans — can now be used anywhere in the UAE.

There are currently more than 20 specialities at the hospital, including physiotherapy, nephrology and a 24/7 emergency department. Dr Moopen said in the coming years a few of the specialities may come to be regarded as the hospital’s flagship departments.