Experts from Children's National and Sheikh Zayed Institute Focus on Innovations in Pediatric Care at World Health Care Congress Middle East

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – Experts from Children’s National Medical Center and its Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation participated in the 3rd Annual World Health Care Congress Middle East this week in Abu Dhabi.

During the Congress, Children’s National held a special pediatric session featuring best practices in several key areas of children’s health that will help eliminate unnecessary complex procedures and reduce pain for children. Attendees included leaders in clinical care and policy development from the across the Middle East and Gulf region. Topics included:

• More precise and effective diagnosis of traumatic head injury, by Shireen Atabaki, MD, MPH, a pediatric emergency medicine specialist and director of Medical Student Education in the Division of Emergency Medicine and Trauma Services at Children’s National. 
• The reduction of preventable pain during and after surgery through the use of advanced minimally invasive surgical approaches tailored for children, by Craig A. Peters, MD, division chief of Surgical Innovation, Technology, and Translation at Children’s National, and lead of the Innovation and Education Initiative at the Sheikh Zayed Institute.
• The development of new integrated tools to diagnose, treat, and manage ongoing pain in children, by Julia Finkel, MD, associate division chief of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine and lead investigator of the Pain Medicine Initiative at the Sheikh Zayed Institute. 

“The historic gift that founded the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation from the government of Abu Dhabi opened the doors to significant collaboration in pediatric health between Children’s and our colleagues in the United Arab Emirates. Children’s and the UAE share a vision for a world where children feel less pain through more precise and less invasive care before, during, and after surgery,” said Dr. Peters. “By sharing our progress and exchanging ideas about the promises on the horizon, we are getting closer to making the vision a reality around the world.”

Children’s National is a recognized international leader in pediatric specialty care and research. Children’s National and the Sheikh Zayed Institute work side by side with clinical and policy leaders from governmental agencies, academic medical centers, corporations, and nonprofit organizations to translate research into areas of care that have a global impact. Children’s National faculty members frequently travel to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, India, Germany, Canada, and many other countries to collaborate with local doctors in the treatment of children and exchange best practices and new ideas on shared global children’s health priorities. Additionally, Children’s state of the art telemedicine technology allows for distance medical consultation and education with more than 100 partnership sites in 14 countries.

The World Health Care Congress Middle East was held December 9 to 11, 2012 in Abu Dhabi.

Related links:

• www.SurgeryInnovation.org, the blog of the Sheikh Zayed Institute
• The Obesity Institute at Children’s National
• The Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation at Children’s National Medical Center

Contact: Jennifer Stinebiser or Emily Hartman, 202-476-4500.