Amazing Grace

Not quite right there, one of the employees at the hospital had an emergency and as he is waiting for residency they questioned whether they would treat and prescribe medicine, so please make sure you have all the facts right and in place.

Desert44

Hi,

I'm looking for a quality 4/5 bedroom villa (idealy modern with swimming pool)in Al Ain as I'm struggling to find one in Abu Dhabi which is where I work, so I'm considering Al Ain.

I'd love to know what's it like to live there...I have wife and two kids (9 & 15)
What would be the commute time to AD
Also, what are the schools like with British Ciriculam, is it easy to find places,
what is the fees?

Appreciate any help on this.

Many thanks

minetoo

This is a good thread for all things Al Ain. Several pages, or maybe more now, back are some posts about school fees. Also somewhere in this thread, there are number and names for most of the rental agents here in Al Ain. Happy reading!

Blue Cat

sorry I forgot you were the expert on all things UAE. Mitten was seen at Maktoum Hospital when she was a year old, no medical card, no residency visa, a friend of mine's father was visiting had a heart attack - in Abu Dhabi was treat at the Government Hospital - no cost whatsoever.

buddymom

I have been treated at Al Ain hospital several times, by different departments.
On a visit visa. Every time I went there. Copy of my passport, and treated. 200 dhs, including meds, every time, every dept. Whatever I needed,..done.

My point is, it is not up to the quality of care I am used to in The USA. It is old, and does not have modern facilities. I would never have an operation anywhere in the UAE, I would fly home to the USA for anything serious.
Just like the Sheiks do. They go to the US or UK for treatment, that pretty much says it all, in my opinion.

Curiously enough, have you ever been treated at Al Ain hospital?

larnie

Sorry but I have to agree with buddymoon. We had no choice but to go to Oasis which I found to be Third World. I didn't have to access the hospital though, but the general medical was enough to put me off. I ended up finding a NZ GP in Dubai and going there when I needed to see a GP and paying for it. The insurance company were quite good and refunded me most fo the costs. He was at the Dubai London Clinic at Festival City. State of the art equipment and a Western fitout. You could make an appointment, none of this sitting around at Oasis for 6 hours waiting to be seen by a Doctor whose English was halting and whose understanding and treatment of your condition left you in tears. Although, having said that I was treated by a Physio there who helped me emmensely albeit by quite archaic means.

I had a friend who required emergency treatment and got it at Oasis. I will not go into detail as it is private but she is still recovery emotionally from her traumatic experience.

Having said all of this I know AG personally and she knows Al Ain Hospital well and has always ecstolled its virtues so if I had ever neede emergency medical treatment in AA I would have gone to Al Ain Hospital.

minetoo

In regards to treatment of people on visit visas and such, I am sure it's like everything else in this country. What works for one person may not work for another.

I am really sorry I brought up anything about hospitals at this point. All I know is that my DH had exemplary service and care at Al Ain Hospital, comparable or better than what he would have received in the states. Amazingly, every doctor that was involved in his care trained in the US for at least 8 years. My purpose in the mention of AL Ain Hospital was to make people aware that there is some hope in the medical care out here. As it was an emergency, we did not have the option to go anywhere but little ol' Al Ain. In addition, I am currently aware of two other situations where one adult and one child were treated at Al Ain Hospital and the care was good.

I think it is our responsibility to help people that are in need of services to make educated decisions based off of real experiences. In that light, criticism is vital for people to hear. As I said in our own case and 2 others, the care has been good.

And NO, I don't work for the hospital.

MT

buddymom

Dont be sorry minetoo. I agree with you wholeheartedly, that people should hear both good and bad. Then make their own choice.

My dh was treated very well and professionally at Oasis. Larnie had a bad time there. Your dh was treated well at Al Ain, I am very glad of that. I hope he is feeling better.

I on the other hand was told to eat brown bread, and yogurt, and be happy, as my diagnosis for a female type problem, by the doctor at Al Ain.
Its kind of funny now, looking back. But I was not happy about it at the time.:

sassypilotswife

Minetoo.. you were fine and offered good advice. Actually it was me that brought up the question regarding the " trauma unit" question. Is it a FACT that there is one? Or is it just an improved emergency room? A trauma unit is not just an ER , it is a unit in fact that is able to provide 24 hour neurosurgeon, cardiologist/surgeon and orthopaedic surgeon in both adult and pediatric that if a patient arrives with a traumatic injury affecting the brain, cardiopulmonary vascular system or possible loss of limb and life, that they can go to surgery within 1 hour ( the golden hour) from the time of onset or injury. With that said, keep in mind that hour begins on the scene and the care you receive enroute is crucial to the outcome upon arrival and after surgery. HERE IS THE MAIN PROBLEM IN AA and this is a FACT. There is NO Prehospital EMS in place that includes Protocols for intervention that include maintaining peripheral perfusion, stroke management and advanced cardiac life support and from what i have learned by professionals in the ER's who receive these patients, they come in Respiratory Distress and barely have o2 on them. It comes back down to the religious beliefs of... if you cut your hand then i guess its god's will that you die cause all bleeding stops eventually. Unfortunately at this point, pre-hospital care is decided by the police and even when you call the emergency number here, you may not get an ambulance for the simple fact the person answering the phone determines if you get one or if you have to call another hospital etc. etc. Ask Leslie,the CEO of UAE Al Ain University what happened to her professor 2 months ago. He was driven around from hospital to hospital after complaining of " feeling bad" until Oasis said " have a seat in the waiting room until we find out IF we can treat you" He died in the waiting room from an MI ( heart attack) while his family was enroute here.. THERE"S YOUR FACTS ! Inshallah.....after meeting with Dr Sheek-Hussein with Dept of Ministry of Health, change will be coming. We're working on it.

Blue Cat

that is so sad Sassy poor guy and his family. To think if someone knew what they were doing he would still be here. Heartbreaking.

busybee2

i wouldnt do the commute to ad its a very windy road, and boring, worse than dxb..... factor in 1.5 hours and none if its foggy which it does get...... and then you are going no where fast.

hana-di

Hey everybody, I am reading through your questions, answers, comments and advice, and loving the dynamics… I am not a blog or a chatroom person but it looks like I risk becoming one if I stayed in Al Ain any longer

I applied for a job in Abu Dhabi and received a phone call from this prestigious educational institute’s HR person telling me I have got the job, although paper work will take a while, what is a “while” in UAE language?
I sent an email inquiring about that and got no answer!
Help…anyone?

busybee2

it depends but it could take a couple of months

hana-di

Ok…. thank you, busybee2, I just needed to have some kind of a time frame, I guess I can keep myself busy for the next two months… But why didn’t they just answer my email…simple

One other question, in the UAE do they usually start by working on resident visa for you? or do you first sign a contract? I don’t understand the system..

sassypilotswife

It was extremely heartbreaking to hear about it and it was an eye opener as well to encourage each company that hires an expat to please include an orientation telling you about your insurance coverage and where to go in case of an illness or how to get an ambulance. I did meet with Dr Oliver Harrison, head of HAAD yesterday and learned that there is now a law passed that is the same as the " Good Samaritan" law in the US... if someone needs medical help you can provide help (so long as there is no intent to create more harm or injury) to them without consequences of being sued or going to jail. He did agree that there is definitely NO Prehospital care and we're still in the " dark ages" I was offered a position there and he gave me a choice to be part of enforcement working with joint commissions staff, enforcing regulations, policies and procedures etc. but i told him that my passion and ambition to bring up to date pre hospital care to Al Ain and improve Abu Dhabi's can't be done sitting behind a desk. It has to be done by bringing an EMS education system here, creating and enforcing protocols, training those already in positions here and we are going to implement every hospital ER staff has to be ACLS, ATLS trained as well as pre hospital care providers that include the police and civil defense. Also, BLS ( basic life support) is going to be implemented to all drivers and teachers. HAAD does not educate or provide training, they are there for policy & procedures but he did send me to the right people. It won't change overnight but at least its beginning. We discussed the statistics and how biased and incorrect they have been and also how the whole " inshallah" response to treating a patient rather than letting him/her die is gone!