American inventor Benjamin Franklin once said that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, a statement most true when applied to health care. Unfortunately, preventative health care in the UAE – especially for children – can be hard to come by. Many local insurance companies don’t cover routine medical examinations; most insurance plans provided by Alico, for example, won’t cover even the simplest preventative treatment like weighing and measuring a baby unless the child is showing the symptoms of some kind of illness. Parents may find themselves in the uncomfortable position of having to invent symptoms simply to have their insurance cover a basic check up, even when they are sure their child is perfectly well.
Enter Al Nahyan Maternal and Child Health Care Center. Perhaps the best kept medical secret in Abu Dhabi, Al Nahyan Maternal and Child Health Care Center is a top notch resource for your babies and small children. Located on the left side of the Central Hospital on 11th Street between Airport Road and 24th Street, just one block from Al Wahda Mall, this clinic is available for all residents of the UAE, both local and expatriate. These qualified doctors provide children from birth to three years old with all of their standard inoculations and well baby examinations. They’ll give vaccinations, measure your baby, help you maintain growth charts, and give you advice about diet and nutrition. Best of all, this service is available for all nationalities and is free.
Unlike the Corniche Hospital, Al Nahyan Maternal and Child Health Care Center doesn’t employ any Western staff, but if you’re nervous about taking your child to a doctor who seems unfamiliar to you, never fear. The doctors and nurses at Al Nahyan Maternal and Child Health Care Center are all fully qualified. Everyone speaks English and everyone is more than happy to answer any questions you may have.
While some public health clinics are dimly-lit horror houses of questionable hygiene, Al Nahyan Maternal and Child Health Care Center is clean and bright. Anyone who’s lived in a country with a federally funded health care system like the UK, Australia, or Canada should be familiar with this type of clinic. Like the Corniche Hospital, Al Nahyan Maternal and Child Health Care Center is subsidised by the government, and even in this land of excess, the UAE powers that be don’t waste money on decor and potted plants. In other words, the care is excellent, the staff are professional, the facility is pristine, and the service is free, but don’t expect lavish extras you might find (and pay for) in a private clinic.
The good news is that whatever the centre lacks in ambiance, they make up for in quality. Unlike in a private doctor’s office, they don’t fill out a prescription pad prior to examining your child. They have nothing to gain by exaggerating illnesses or feeding the neuroses of nervous first time mothers, and the very same inoculations your private doctor will charge you an arm and a leg for are absolutely free here. If something is legitimately wrong with your child, the professionals will refer you to a private doctor or to a hospital. Otherwise, they’ll take only the steps they need to insure your child continues to grow normally.
The bad news is that, because Al Nahyan Maternal and Child Health Care Center is available to Western and local patients alike, only women are allowed. The hours, too, are not very conducive to the schedules of working parents, so if you work during the day or you’re one of the few single fathers around, you’ll want to consider sending your children with a female nanny. Also, because this center is a well baby clinic, you should only take your children for standard vaccinations and check ups, not if they are ill.
Be prepared when you arrive on your first visit: you have to know what you’re looking for as many people working in the hospital don’t know Al Nahyan Maternal and Child Health Care Center is there or don’t understand what it is. The clinic is located through the second door on the far left hand side of the building the cab drivers know as the Central Hospital; the official name on the front of the complex is the General Authority for Health Services for the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, Preventative Medicine. Your employer may have taken you there for blood a test to obtain your visa.
To open a file, bring originals and copies of your child’s birth certificate and health card, plus originals and copies of the child’s passport and the child’s father’s passport. The clinic is open from 8am to 1pm Sunday to Thursday; no appointment is necessary, but for that reason, you may have to wait a while depending on the number of patients ahead of you. Al Nahyan Maternal and Child Health Care Center, General Authority for Health Services for the Emirate of Abu Dhabi Preventative Medicine, 11th Street between Airport Road and 24th Street (02 616 9521).
