Children's National Hospital expands partnership with Dubai Health, Al Jalila Children's Specialty Hospital to advance pediatric care
Children’s National Hospital is expanding its partnership with Dubai Health, Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This strategic collaboration underscores a shared commitment to delivering innovative training aimed at improving health outcomes for children throughout the UAE and the world.
Earlier this month, leaders from Children’s National visited the UAE to engage with the leadership teams at Dubai Health and Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital. This visit allowed for meaningful discussions about ongoing collaborative efforts and the introduction of Michelle Riley-Brown, MHA, FACHE, president and chief executive officer of Children's National, to Al Jalila’s leadership team.
This week, Children’s National hosted Dubai Health and Al Jalila Children's Specialty Hospital executives at the Children’s National Research & Innovation Campus. During this visit, the two groups formalized the new partnership agreement.
“Together, we are deepening our shared commitment to advancing pediatric healthcare,” said Riley-Brown. “This collaboration is about more than just exchanging knowledge — it's about building sustainable, innovative solutions that will improve health outcomes for children, both in the UAE and globally. We want to ensure every child receives the highest quality of treatment, regardless of where they live.”
Children’s National and Al Jalila Children's Specialty Hospital have worked together for eight years, partnering initiatives focused on technology, pediatric specialty training and quality and safety. The expanded partnership will build upon this work.
Key Highlights
- Advanced technology collaboration: In 2018, Al Jalila and Children’s National signed a health information technology (IT) agreement to equip Al Jalila with the use of customer relationship management (CRM) systems. Now both institutions will focus on optimizing health IT systems and enhancing patient care efficiency and data management. This includes expanding telehealth services, remote patient monitoring and improving access to specialized pediatric care.
- Enhanced training programs: In 2022, both institutions signed an agreement for educational and advisory services. In 2024, Children’s National also supported Al Jalila in case reviews and provided training to cardiac intensive care unit (CICU) nurses, further enhancing clinical capabilities. Now, the partnership will incorporate more extensive training and education initiatives for healthcare professionals at Al Jalila Children’s Hospital, the first dedicated pediatric facility in the UAE.
- Integration of quality improvement leadership training best practices: By leveraging the expertise of Children’s National in quality training, Al Jalila Children’s Hospital will integrate best practices and innovative care models into its services, ensuring the highest standards of medical treatment for children through continuous improvement in patient safety and quality of care. In 2023, the first Quality Improvement Leadership Training (QuILT) cohort at Al Jalila was completed, showcasing significant advancements in quality training. Looking ahead, in 2025, Children’s National will provide training to a second QuILT cohort at Al Jalila, further enhancing quality improvement efforts.
“We are proud to strengthen our partnership with Children’s National Hospital, one of the world’s leading pediatric institutions,” said Dr. Amer Sharif, chief executive officer of Dubai Health. “This collaboration underscores our commitment to fostering strategic partnerships between our integrated academic healthcare system and the private sector to advance children’s health through the delivery of world-class care. The partnership aligns with the objectives set out in Dubai’s Social Agenda 33, focused on building an efficient healthcare ecosystem that meets the highest global standards. It also reinforces Dubai’s position as a global leader in healthcare, medical education and scientific research, as we collectively work to be among the top cities in these fields.”
“We extend our gratitude to our partners at Children’s National Hospital for their invaluable collaboration in strengthening this partnership. Through this alliance, we aim to deepen our knowledge of best practices through an evidence-based approach that supports our ongoing efforts to enhance patient care. This commitment aligns with Dubai Health’s core value of putting the patient first at every step of the healthcare journey,” he added.
Dr. Mohammed Al Awadhi, deputy chief executive officer of Al Jalila Children’s Hospital, added: “The strengthening of our partnership with Children’s National Hospital will continue our work to elevate the standard of care for children in Dubai and beyond. Specifically, it will enable us to enhance operational efficiency and pediatric subspecialties, and training for our teams in line with our ‘children-first promise’ to ensure the best possible care for every child.”
See photos and video of the visit.