As part of its commitment to engage young people in the planning of the UAE’s next 50 years, the Ministry of Health and Prevention, MoHAP, organised a virtual meeting with university students and members of youth councils to discuss the future health plan, in the presence of Dr. Abdul Rahman bin Mohammad bin Nasser Al Owais, Minister of Health and Prevention, and Dr. Amin Hussein Al Amiri, the Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health and Prevention’s Public Health Policy and Licenses, and Chairman of the 50-year preparation plan.

The step comes in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to launch the largest community design project to develop the next stage of the nation's comprehensive development process covering the next 50 years.

Those at the session discussed topics of interest to the youth in the health path, including consolidating healthy behaviours in society, strengthening preventive and treatment systems based on smart health services, adopting a personal health care model based upon the Fourth Industrial Revolution technology to meet the UAE leadership’s goals in the health field.

In his remarks during the meeting, Al Owais said, "The session was productive and rich in creative and innovative ideas, with strong interaction from the participants about their aspirations and visions for the future of the country, something that proves that they are trustworthy and can shoulder the responsibility to harvest the results of country’s investment in youth energies and talents."

Al Owais referred to the opportunity the UAE has provided to young people in research, training, and development fields to effectively participate in the community design for shaping the next fifty years in the UAE.

The session saw a number of constructive proposals and ideas presented by the university and school students to develop the UAE’s healthcare system, as Asmaa Muhammad, a student at the College of Medicine at the University of Sharjah, delivered a proposal on a smart application for a virtual hospital and the integration of government hospitals into a single programme using the in-app medical record of patients, without the need to repeatedly visit a hospital.

Thanking the students for their active participation in the community design project for the next 50 years, Al Owais noted the importance of the proposals and ideas submitted, urging the students to step up their efforts.