ENOC has extended its support to the Thalassemia campaign, a community health awareness initiative being held under the auspices of the UAE Genetic Diseases Association from May 1 to 31, 2008. The month-long drive, organised in connection with International Thalassemia Day, will include an information campaign and free Thalassemia screening tests at all colleges and universities in Dubai.




Information posters on the disease will be available at ENOC service stations in Dubai. Wearing campaign T-shirts and caps, ENOC staff will also distribute information material among customers and encourage them to take advantage of the free screening tests




“As a company for which health is a top priority, ENOC realises the importance of knowledge and awareness of Thalassemia. With the large number of customers they receive daily, ENOC service stations are ideal places to distribute information and remind people of simple steps they can take that will make a huge difference,” said Saeed Abdullah Khoory, ENOC Group Chief Executive.




“Our support to the Thalassemia campaign also reflects our ongoing commitment to the community,” Khoory added




Commenting on the initiative, Dr. Mariam Mattar said: “The UAE Genetic Diseases Association has been able to considerably reduce the impact of common genetic disorders prevalent in the country through its community outreach programmes, health education, counselling and free screening tests. Thanks to the support of the government and increasing awareness among people, UAEGDA now has a free genetic clinic equipped with a state-of-the-art screening facility supervised by internationally-renowned experts.




“UAEGDA’s first program is ‘UAE Free of Thalassemia 2012’, and as part of this year’s International Thalassemia Day, UAEGDA has intensified its awareness programmes and mobilized new units to facilitate blood donations. We are grateful for the support extended by the oil companies in the UAE, including ENOC, for helping with dissemination of information on this preventable disorder through their sites.”




A gathering of Thalassemia patients and families will be held at Dubai Creek Park on the 3rd of May to mark International Thalassemia Day. Though the day falls on the 8th of May every year, Dubai is holding the event on an earlier date. Doctors from across the UAE will deliver an educational lecture at the event and participants will have the opportunity to ask questions about treatment updates.




Thalassemia patients require regular, and in some cases frequent, blood transfusions for survival. Though highly prevalent in the Gulf region, all it takes to prevent this disorder is a simple and inexpensive pre-marital blood test. The high prevalence of this disease means that blood banks in the country are constantly under pressure to meet the transfusion needs of patients.




ENOC has been supporting thalassemia patients in the country by organising regular blood donation drives in association with Al Wasl Hospital Dubai. The Thalassemia Centre functioning at Al Wasl Hospital under the Department of Health and Medical Services currently uses 60% of its blood reserves to treat Thalassemia patients.




ENOC




Established in 1993 as a wholly-owned company of the Government of Dubai, ENOC aims to promote the interests of its shareholders through the development of further downstream and upstream activities in the oil and gas sector and beyond and to encourage the economic diversification of Dubai and the rest of the UAE.




ENOC actively participates in an increasingly broad range of business ventures. Its joint ventures with major international companies allow partners to pool their technology, know-how and expertise along with their resources to further their commercial success.




Since its inception, ENOC has been guided by its philosophy of quality and professional management based on modern business concepts for commercial success and sustainable growth. Today it is poised to engineer a new and challenging period of growth and diversity.




ENOC’s vision is to be the reliable Energy Partner of Choice in each sector in which it operates.