Real-time interactive consultations can improve patient outcomes. Such consultations often lead to positive changes in diagnosis and patient management. Telemedicine is an excellent tool in treating dermatological patients, as skin diseases can be easily studied through digital photo or video images (Trettel et al., 2018). Telemedicine consultations generally improve the quality of medical care. They allow one to provide care for those who do not have the opportunity to quickly and conveniently get an appointment with a dermatologist. Telemedicine is in increasing demand in geographically remote areas and other populated areas with insufficient medical care. Telemedicine in dermatology involves saving image files and sending them to a dermatologist for review (“store-and-forward” operation) at any time (Bastola et al., 2021). Another method of telemedicine is interactive video conferencing, which allows for real-time communication between patients, referring doctors, and consulting specialists. The advantage of such interactive conferences is getting acquainted with the patient’s medical history quickly. The specialist can also immediately capture and save additional digital images when more detailed clinical information is needed.
In 2019, the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) launched a new “Doctor for Every Citizen” initiative (The Official Portal of the UAE Government, 2019). Now every UAE citizen will have free round-the-clock access to doctors’ consultations and will receive it without leaving home, office, and any other location. DHA CEO Humaid Al Qutami presented the initiative at a management meeting and said the project aims to fulfill the terms of a 50-year directive issued by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. Thanks to the initiative, the Dubai healthcare system will increase its ranking concerning the best international systems in the world. Fifty specialists from public and private hospitals were trained to provide online consultations at the start of the launch of the telemedicine platform. This is an essential step in the era of integrated healthcare delivery systems using intelligent digital technologies such as electronic health records and electronic prescriptions and, of course, telemedicine. Currently, the telemedicine consulting program is available to any UAE citizen. The full version of the electronic medical record of patients registered with DHA will be made available to general practitioners (GPs) and family doctors during the consultation.
The way the program works is similar to the Tattvan E-Clinic business model. At the initial stage of Doctor for Every Citizen’s work, patients will receive advice on diabetes, allergies, hypertension, and dermatological problems, as these are among the most common health problems. In the future, specialized services will be added to the list. To book a consultation, the patient can either download the DHA app or call the DHA toll-free number 800 342. The doctor and patient will also be able to communicate via video call. The patient is assigned a specialist who gains access to the electronic medical record. At the first admission, the patient receives a preliminary diagnosis, and in the future, they are supervised by a specialized specialist who will issue a prescription. If necessary, medications will be delivered to their home. If a patient requires a diagnostic examination or complex tests, he is sent to the hospital, registered online for testing.
In fact, in order for Tattvan E-Clinic to enter the UAE market, the organization needs to focus on its target audience, which is non-UAE citizens residing in the state’s territory. Traditional is the strategy of state support, that is, providing medical service providers with the necessary information about the conjuncture of foreign markets, advertising the national market for medical services abroad, and concluding contracts between the government of the country and foreign companies for the development of the national market (for example, in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, South Korea) (Zajicek,& Meyers, 2018). Thus, the competitiveness of medical service providers in the world market is determined by the level of development of the national market for medical services and the share of private funds in health care financing, and the availability of effective instruments of state support for national medical service providers. These tools are being successfully applied in developing countries to increase the involvement of national providers in the global healthcare market, thereby creating a healthy competitive environment for international healthcare companies from developed countries. The entry of Tattvan E-Clinic into the UAE market implies creating a reasonable offer for low-income UAE residents who do not have access to public health care. The SWOT analysis shows that the most appropriate strategy for entering the UAE market, taking into account the existing supply and competition, is the very precise segmentation of the target audience while maintaining affordability as much as possible. The analysis revealed that the strengths of dermatological telemedicine in Dubai are the availability to every citizen and a high degree of technological development. At the same time, the major weakness is the inaccessibility of health care for non-citizens of the country. In connection with the increase in the number of immigrants in the UAE, a situation began to arise when doctors simply could not serve everyone, there was not enough medicine, and local residents could not get to the hospital because all the beds were occupied. It was decided that only citizens can use free medical care, and migrants can visit hospitals only by paying for an appointment or buying medical insurance in advance, which covers the costs (Al-Samarraie et al., 2020). A doctor’s appointment is quite expensive without insurance: for example, a regular consultation with a doctor will cost 40-50 dirhams. To call a specialist at home, one will need at least 70 dirhams. The simplest operation costs at least 10 thousand dirhams. However, here telemedicine opens up new possibilities: dermatology, being a specialization in which telemedicine technologies are justified and the most developed, is an area subject to the most rapid reduction in the cost of admission.
In addition, opportunities are the involvement in the cooperation between the medical corporation Partners Harvard Medical International and the government of the Emirate of Dubai, within the framework of which Dubai Healthcare City was founded (Anttiroiko, 2018). Currently, Dubai Healthcare City is the largest international medical hub in the Middle East region, driving the development of medical tourism. Dermatologists in Dubai engage with the knowledge and experience of the global medical community through professional involvement in the innovative foreign telemedicine market and the subsequent expansion of the company in the Far East (Alnakhi, 2021).
On the other hand, threats are primarily associated with legal difficulties. For example, dermatologists accredited in other countries cannot consult patients in the UAE. This can lead to the need for specialists to relocate and re-accreditation to the UAE, potentially leading to an increase in the overall cost of the clinic’s services. Besides, there are issues related to data storage and its ownership (Moonesar, 2019). Most probably, it will be the UAE that owns the data of patients disregarding their nationality.
References
Al-Samarraie, H., Ghazal, S., Alzahrani, A. I., & Moody, L. (2020). Telemedicine in middle eastern countries: progress, barriers, and policy recommendations. International journal of medical informatics, 141, 104232.
Alnakhi, W. K. (2021). Medical Travel and Public Health: Definitions, Frameworks, and Future Research. In Growth of the Medical Tourism Industry and Its Impact on Society: Emerging Research and Opportunities (pp. 74-94). IGI Global.
Anttiroiko, A. V. (2018). Wellness City Strategies in Local-Global Dialectic. In Wellness City (pp. 99-137). Palgrave Pivot, Cham.
Bastola, M., Locatis, C., & Fontelo, P. (2021). Diagnostic reliability of in-person versus remote dermatology: a meta-analysis. Telemedicine and e-Health, 27(3), 247-250.
Moonesar, I. A. (2019). Electronic Health Record Management: Dubai Health Authority’s Project ‘SALAMA.’ In Future Governments. Emerald Publishing Limited.
The Official Portal of the UAE Government. (2019). Telemedicine. The United Arab Emirates’ Government Portal. Web.
Trettel, A., Eissing, L., & Augustin, M. (2018). Telemedicine in dermatology: findings and experiences worldwide–a systematic literature review. Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, 32(2), 215-224.
Zajicek, H., & Meyers, A. (2018). Digital health entrepreneurship. In Digital health (pp. 271-287). Springer, Cham.