The Metaverse, Astronauts and Robotics on Show During the Opening Day of Arab Health and Medlab Middle East

A diverse range of new healthcare technology and innovation was revealed on, Monday 24 January, during the opening day of Arab Health and Medlab Middle East, with the Metaverse and Robotic-Assisted Thoracic Surgery (RATS) taking centre stage, and an astronaut confirmed to speak later this week.

Solenne Singer, Group Director for Informa Markets

Global clinicians made ‘exhibition history’ by attending a lecture in the Metaverse with the launch of The Metaversity hosted live from Arab Health. Presented by Professor Shafi Ahmed, Chief Medical Officer of Medical Realities, the session took place on the ABHI UK operating theatre and connected medical professionals from around the globe.

“In the future, maybe we will see benefits such as remote collaboration with patients and dissemination of information among clinicians at different centres. Virtual reality and augmented reality are already making a difference in patients’ lives, and Metaverse allows us to take this to the next level,” said Professor Ahmed.

World-renowned surgeons also demonstrated a Right RATS (Robotic-Assisted Thoracic Surgery) Lower Lobectomy and Lymph Node Dissection procedure via Proximie, a software platform connecting clinicians to the operating room from anywhere in the world.

The technology can be used for consultations allowing clinicians to remotely ‘scrub-in’ to the operating room and educational purposes. Every Proximie assisted procedure can be recorded, analysed and leveraged for future use.

Tom Routledge, Consultant Thoracic Surgeon, said, “Due to the extra precision the robots give us, we can carry out more complex procedures, and patients should experience less pain, can go home sooner and make a faster recovery. Robotic lung surgery is mainly used to remove cancerous or benign tumours."

Technology and innovation will remain prominent throughout Arab Health and Medlab Middle East, with key exhibitors including Siemens, Canon, Masimo, Drager, GE Healthcare, Philips, Abbott, Roche, and Seegene, revealing their latest cutting-edge products.

Several sessions will also take place as part of the Healthcare Transformation Talks, which forms part of the Transformation Zone, a dedicated area to explore the latest tech advancements in healthcare from global innovators and disruptors. Hot topics of discussion on day one included ‘Saving lives with data’ by Dr Hamed Al Hashemi, Executive Director Strategic Affairs, Department of Health, Abu Dhabi; and ‘Transforming Healthcare with Artificial Intelligence’ by Charbel Makhoul, AI Solution and Healthcare IT Director, Canon Medical, amongst others.

Elsewhere in the Transformation Zone, the popular start-up competition, Innov8 Talks, began today with eight companies showcasing unique and innovative solutions during the opening day of Arab Health and Medlab Middle East.

They included, amongst others, Tahmo, a company developing core technology for wearables and connected medical devices as part of the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT); 8chili, a company dedicated to becoming the best-in-class metaverse platform of choice for patient engagement, medical education and Healthcare skill acquisition; and Aria, one of the first blockchain healthcare solutions in the world to have successfully deployed its work in live hospital environments.

The winner will be announced on Thursday 27, the final day of both events.

Today, several conferences also took place as part of the Arab Health Congress, including Total Radiology and Orthopaedics. Tomorrow sees the start of the Obs & Gyn and the Surgery conference tracks. In addition, the Medlab Middle East Congress agenda began today with Laboratory Management and Haematology, with a special track on COVID-19 Updates and Histopathology taking place tomorrow.

Solenne Singer, Group Director for Informa Markets, said, “The opening day of Arab Health and Medlab Middle East has underscored the exhibition’s importance as a platform for showcasing the latest cutting-edge technology and highlighting what can now be achieved in the medical environment. Today was just a taster of what can be expected for the remainder of the week.”

On Wednesday 26 at 10 am, a fireside chat with NASA Astronaut Dr Scott E. Parazynski under the theme of Space Health - the role of technology off-planet, why we go and what we’ve learnt. The chat will take place at the UK Pavilion.

Arab Health, co-located with Medlab Middle East 2022, is the largest healthcare exhibition and congress in the MENA region. The event attracts global healthcare professionals and features a range of scientific lectures, industry briefings, product demonstrations and networking opportunities.

A virtual showcase of Arab Health and Medlab Middle East will continue until 22 July.

Both exhibitions started at 10 am today, Monday 24, and conclude at 5 pm Thursday, 27 January.

For more information, please visit www.arabhealthonline.com and www.medlabme.com