Columbia HeartSource to Add Affiliate in Abu Dhabi, UAE
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center is poised to expand its network of hospitals by partnering with Lifeline hospital in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
The new affiliation is part of the Columbia HeartSource program, which helps other hospitals to establish or improve the quality of their cardiovascular programs. At this time, HeartSource currently works with 17 other hospitals to provide programmatic support including quality improvement, recruitment and transfer of innovation to community based hospitals. The affiliation in Abu Dhabi will be the second international program in the department and the first in the Middle East, according to Larry Beilis, Chief Financial and Administrative Officer of the Department of Surgery and HeartSource. Mr. Beilis visited Abu Dhabi in early February 2011, where he met with hospital administrators regarding the partnership.
"I think it is important to share Columbia's expertise and help programs abroad to provide great quality cardiac surgery," says Mr. Beilis. "The new heart surgery program in Abu Dhabi will provide a unique relationship that will benefit the United Arab Emirate region."
The Columbia HeartSource program has helped four hospitals to develop brand-new cardiac surgery programs, including Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital (Cooperstown, NY); Bon Secours Maryview Hospital (Portsmouth, VA); Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (Edison, NJ); and Stamford Medical Center (Stamford, CT). Other hospitals in numerous states have enlisted HeartSource's expertise to restructure and improve the quality of their cardiovascular programs.
Centers in the Columbia HeartSource Community are able to claim affiliation with the Department of Surgery Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery after meeting rigorous requirements in training and education, implementation of surgical protocols, and quality oversight.
In Abu Dhabi, HeartSource will establish the adult heart surgery program first, possibly to be followed by other clinical services.