SARA ALZAABI AND ASILA ALBADI (ABU DHABI)
From an air ambulance that can transport patients across borders to stem cell and gene therapies, healthcare innovations at this year’s Make it in the Emirates (MIITE) spotlight the UAE’s drive to continuously advance life-saving care and transform how diseases are treated, predicted, and prevented.
The wide range of healthcare technologies, prototypes, and concepts on display covered every point of care – from emergencies that require rapid response to the management of medical conditions where intervention options were previously limited.
During the exhibition, pre-hospital care provider Response Plus Holding launched the first long-range air ambulance aircraft, a Challenger 605, which can perform intercontinental flights with a range of up to 4,000 nautical miles.
Dr Rohil Raghavan, CEO of Response Plus Holding said the new aircraft is equipped with the latest medical technologies to operate as a fully integrated airborne intensive care unit.
With its capabilities, the long-range air ambulance significantly cuts patient transfer time between countries, increasing chances of saving lives in critical situations.
“In emergency care, seconds can make the difference enhancing situational awareness and coordination directly improves response times, patient outcomes, and overall efficiency,” Dr Raghavan told Aletihad.
Another aspect of healthcare heavily covered at the exhibition were the latest tech developments in genetic medicine.
Burjeel Holdings, for example, announced one of the region’s first integrated gene therapy platforms aimed at transforming treatment for patients with genetic blood disorders such as thalassaemia and sickle cell disease.
Dr Mohammad Fityan, Group Chief Medical Officer of Burjeel Medical City, said the initiative marks a shift in how such conditions are treated, moving beyond long-term disease management towards potential curative approaches.
“For patients with thalassaemia and sickle cell disease, the current reality can often mean lifelong treatment, repeated hospital visits, blood transfusions, pain crises, complications, and a major emotional and financial burden on families,” he said.
“Gene therapy has the potential to change that model from long-term disease management to a one-time or limited-course treatment with curative intent for eligible patients.”
The platform is being developed locally through EQUIGENE Therapeutics, supported by specialised experts, with the aim of bringing advanced treatments closer to patients in the UAE and wider region.
Dr Fityan said that building these capabilities within the country is critical, particularly given the prevalence of such conditions in the region.
“Many patients who could benefit from gene therapy may not be able to travel abroad for evaluation, treatment, and long-term follow-up,” he said, adding that having local infrastructure and expertise makes care “more practical and more equitable”.
In the UAE capital, the Abu Dhabi Biobank is leading efforts to demonstrate how stem cells can be used to advance medical research and care.
The biobank has announced a strategic partnership with Human Life CORD Japan to localise the development and clinical application of umbilical cord–derived stem cell therapies in Abu Dhabi.
Paul Downey, General Manager of Abu Dhabi Biobank, said the partnership focuses on advanced regenerative therapies. These products are designed for “treating serious respiratory conditions with stem cells”, he added, describing the approach as regenerative and potentially curative.
Combining advanced biobanking infrastructure with specialised biotechnology enhances precision medicine and strengthens Abu Dhabi’s role as a global life sciences hub.
Downey said the strength of Abu Dhabi’s healthcare sector lies in the “sophistication of its ecosystem”, supported by integrated platforms such as Malaffi and national genome programmes.
These assets, he added, create “an incredibly rich biomedical research resource” that enables a better understanding of diseases, earlier intervention, and more precise pathways of care.