Introduction
In recent years, the UAE has made significant strides in building a unified, digital healthcare ecosystem. Three major health information exchanges—Riayati, Malaffi, and NABIDH—are central to this vision. They aim to connect healthcare providers, improve continuity of care, and ensure patients’ medical data is accessible wherever they seek treatment across the country.
This blog explains what each system is, how they differ, and why clinics and healthcare providers must be aligned with these platforms.
1. What is NABIDH?
NABIDH (National Backbone for Integrated Dubai Health) is the health information exchange governed by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA). It facilitates the electronic exchange of patient medical records among all healthcare facilities in Dubai.
Key Features:
- Centralized patient health record system for Dubai
- Mandated for all licensed facilities under DHA (certain wellness and alternative medicine practices are exempt)
- Seamless sharing of clinical data, prescriptions, lab reports, and radiology results
Clinic Impact:
Clinics must integrate their EMRs with NABIDH to ensure compliance. This means real-time sharing of encounter data via HL7 data exchange enabled by the EMR.
However, simply signing up with a NABIDH-certified EMR like Unite does not guarantee instant compliance. Choosing an EMR vendor like Unitecare, with extensive onboarding experience, significantly reduces onboarding time. Clinics can skip to the System Integration Testing (SIT) phase.
NABIDH Onboarding Stages:
- Build Status – Skipped
- Unit Testing – Skipped
- SIT Checklist – Begins here (API config & masked message validation)
- Data Monitoring – Live monitoring of masked messages
- SIT Testing – Complete SIT scenarios
- SIT Certificate Signatures
- Cutover Checklist – Includes RFC, IP whitelisting, production config, connectivity/smoke testing, and go-live confirmation
⏱ Timeframe: NABIDH onboarding typically takes 6–8 weeks post go-live, and clinics are scheduled in a queue. Any claims of instant onboarding post go-live are misleading.
2. What is Malaffi?
Malaffi, meaning "my file" in Arabic, is the Health Information Exchange (HIE) for Abu Dhabi, governed by the Department of Health (DoH). It connects both public and private healthcare providers to a centralized, cloud-based patient database.
Key Features:
- Covers facilities in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain
- Offers a longitudinal view of patient history
- Empowers data-driven decisions by clinicians
Clinic Impact:
Malaffi onboarding requires specific infrastructure, such as SD-WAN and security validations. Integration is mandatory for all DoH-licensed facilities.
The process begins with issuing a System Code—a unique identifier for each clinic’s EMR integration.
Timeline:
- 4–6 weeks to issue System Code
- 2–3 weeks for onboarding (can be faster)
💡 Note: While cloud SD-WAN supports data submission, viewing data through it is currently not supported by Malaffi.
3. What is Riayati?
Riayati is the nationwide Health Information Exchange under MOHAP (Ministry of Health and Prevention). It primarily covers Northern Emirates and select federal entities.
Key Features:
- National HIE for Northern Emirates
- Emirates ID-linked standardized patient identifier system
- Centralized system for medical history, lab results, and imaging
Clinic Impact:
MOHAP-licensed clinics must integrate with Riayati. EMRs must be HL7-compliant and capable of supporting national patient identifiers.
At Unitecare, we assist clinics with Riayati approvals, especially those required for license renewals in the Northern Emirates.
⏱ Timeframe: Onboarding takes approximately 4–6 weeks.
💡 Clinics are encouraged to start early to avoid delays in license renewals due to pending Riayati compliance.
4. Why These Integrations Matter
The core purpose of NABIDH, Malaffi, and Riayati is to:
- Improve patient safety
- Reduce duplicate tests and errors
- Enable continuity of care across providers
Benefits for Clinics:
- Enhanced trust and credibility
- Easier audits and inspections
- Informed decision-making for better clinical outcomes
- Compliance with licensing and renewal requirements
🚨 Important Reminder: Onboarding is not a one-click process—it involves formal phases, scheduling, and validations. However, active onboarding proof is often sufficient for compliance until full integration is achieved.
5. How Unitecare Supports This Vision
Unite EMR is purpose-built for the UAE healthcare ecosystem and already integrated with NABIDH, Malaffi, and Riayati.
With Unitecare, clinics benefit from:
- Pre-validated APIs and compliance-ready setup
- Cloud SD-WAN capabilities for Malaffi
- Whitelisted IP infrastructure for NABIDH
- Emirates ID-based patient matching logic
Our goal is to simplify the compliance journey and help clinics participate in the UAE’s vision for a smarter, connected healthcare system.
Conclusion
As the UAE races ahead with its digital healthcare transformation, clinics must prioritize integration with NABIDH, Malaffi, and Riayati.
Choosing a partner like Unitecare doesn’t just ensure compliance—it brings you closer to the future of healthcare: connected, data-driven, and patient-centered.
📞 Want to ensure your clinic is fully integrated with UAE health authorities?
Contact Unitecare today and discover how we simplify compliance for you.
