UAE edition · Independent education for MOHAP, DHA, DOH, SHA and DHCR licensed healthcare professionals

Consent, privacy and communication

Open Disclosure Course: Telling Patients When Things Go Wrong (UAE)

Plan and hold the conversation no clinician wants to have: what to say after harm, how to apologise without stating legal conclusions, and how to record and follow up.

  • 2learning hours
  • 20final questions
  • 80%pass mark
  • PDFcertificate

What you will learn

  • Define open disclosure and the duty of candour using the wording of DHA ST-53 and DHA ST-66, and distinguish disclosure from incident reporting and notification.
  • Identify the federal duties (FDL 4/2016 Arts 3, 4 and 37; CR 40/2019 Art. 2; Federal Law No. 5 of 2019 Art. 17; Federal Law No. 6 of 2023 Art. 8) and Patient's Charter rights that underpin disclosure in every emirate.
  • Compare the disclosure requirements of the DHA, the DOH, MOHAP, the SHA and Dubai Healthcare City, and apply those of your own licensing authority.
  • Decide when and at what level disclosure is needed, using the DOH incident severity levels and the definitions of near miss, adverse event and sentinel event.
  • Plan a disclosure conversation: who leads, who attends, when, where and with what information.
  • Conduct a disclosure conversation using the four ST-53 elements, in plain language, with a professional interpreter where needed.
  • Explain why an apology and a factual account differ from a finding of medical error by a Medical Liability Committee, and word an apology without speculation, blame or legal conclusions.
  • Document a disclosure conversation and any late entry in line with CR 40/2019 Art. 2 and DHA ST-66 s.9.3, and plan follow-up until closure.
  • Adapt disclosure for children, patients lacking capacity, bereaved families, multi-patient events and different professions and settings.
  • Support colleagues after harm and demonstrate insight and remediation after a failure of candour.

Relevant to

The UAE codes, standards and laws this course helps you reflect on. Relevance is our own mapping; it is not an approval by any authority.

  • DHADHA ST-66 Standard 6 (duty of candour, s.10.4.7) and Standard 8 (s.12.1); open disclosure provisions of DHA ST-53
  • DOHDisclosure requirements of the DOH Incident Reporting and Management Standard V2 (2024); DOH Standard on Reporting Medication Errors (2019)
  • MOHAPDuties of honesty and information in Federal Law No. 5 of 2019 Art. 17 and Federal Law No. 6 of 2023 Art. 8
  • Federal Decree-Law No. 4 of 2016 Arts 3 and 4 and Cabinet Resolution No. 40 of 2019 Art. 2

About this course

This course teaches licensed healthcare professionals in the UAE how to tell patients and families honestly when care has caused harm. It covers the duty of candour in the DHA Standards for Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct (ST-66, 2025), the definition and four elements of open disclosure in the DHA sentinel events standard (ST-53), the disclosure requirements of the DOH Incident Reporting and Management Standard (V2, 2024), and the federal duties of honesty and information in Federal Decree-Law No. 4 of 2016, Cabinet Resolution No. 40 of 2019 and the Patient's Rights and Responsibilities Charter. It then takes you step by step through recognising when disclosure is needed, preparing and holding the conversation, working with interpreters and families, apologising without making legal admissions, documenting disclosure, following up, and supporting colleagues afterwards.

Any licensed clinician can use it: doctors, dentists, nurses and midwives, pharmacists and allied health staff, whether their licence comes from MOHAP, the DHA, the DOH, the SHA or Dubai Healthcare City, and whether they work in a government hospital, a private clinic or a community pharmacy. It suits professionals who want to be ready before an adverse event happens, team leaders who support disclosure conversations, and anyone reflecting on an event that was not disclosed as well as it should have been.

In the UAE, patients and healthcare teams come from dozens of countries and speak many languages, and a single adverse event can lead to a facility review, notification to the health authority, a Medical Liability Committee and disciplinary proceedings. How a professional behaves in the first hours after harm (whether they tell the patient, say sorry, report the event and keep an honest record) shapes all of these. This course gives you the UAE rules, practical words and realistic cases from Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Al Ain and the Northern Emirates to get those first hours right.

Syllabus

11 sections, about 2 learning hours, 20-question final assessment

  1. 1Open disclosure and candour: what they mean in UAE practice3 lessons
    • What open disclosure means in UAE healthcare
    • Why disclosure matters: patients, trust and the law
    • Why disclosure fails: barriers in UAE workplaces
  2. 2The UAE rules on disclosure, authority by authority3 lessons
    • Dubai: the DHA code of ethics and the sentinel events standard
    • Abu Dhabi, the Northern Emirates, Sharjah and Dubai Healthcare City
    • Disclosure alongside reporting, review and notification
  3. 3Recognising when disclosure is needed2 lessons
    • When must you disclose? Harm, severity and complications
    • Grey areas: near misses, late discoveries and other people's errors
  4. 4Preparing for and holding the disclosure conversation3 lessons
    • Preparing for a disclosure conversation
    • Holding the conversation: structure and words
    • Language, interpreters, family and cultural respect
  5. 5Apology, admission and medical liability2 lessons
    • Apology is not an admission of medical error
    • When a complaint, claim or investigation follows
  6. 6Documenting disclosure and following up2 lessons
    • Documenting the disclosure
    • Following up: keeping the promise
  7. 7Disclosure in special situations2 lessons
    • Children, patients lacking capacity and bereaved families
    • Disclosure across professions and settings
  8. 8Supporting staff, just culture and showing insight2 lessons
    • Just culture and support for the professional involved
    • Candour, insight and remediation
  9. 9Conclusion and key points1 lesson
    • Conclusion and key points
  10. 10References and further reading1 lesson
    • References and further reading
  11. 11Your reflective account1 lesson
    • Your reflective account

Course facts

CPD value
Approximately 2 learning hours (self-directed CPD, including knowledge checks, reflection and assessment)
Audience
Licensed healthcare professionals in the UAE (physicians, dentists, nurses, midwives, pharmacists and allied health professionals) licensed by MOHAP, DHA, DOH, SHA or DHCR, in government and private facilities
Standards covered
DHA Standards for Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct for Health Professionals (ST-66, 2025); DHA Standards for Sentinel Events Notification and Management in Health Facilities (ST-53, 2024, v1.1 2025); DOH Incident Reporting and Management Standard (DOH/HWS/IRMS/V2/2024); DOH Standard on Reporting Medication Errors (2019); Federal Decree-Law No. 4 of 2016 and Cabinet Resolution No. 40 of 2019; Federal Law No. 5 of 2019; Federal Law No. 6 of 2023 and Cabinet Resolution No. 176 of 2025; Federal Law No. 2 of 2019; Ministerial Resolution No. 14 of 2021 (Patient's Rights and Responsibilities Charter); Dubai Executive Council Resolution No. 49 of 2024
Format
Self-paced, gated lessons with knowledge checks, UAE case studies and reflection
Assessment
20 scenario-based questions, 80% to pass (16 of 20)
Outcome
Certificate of completion and a written reflection for your professional development portfolio
Alignment
Supports reflection on DHA ST-66 Standard 6 (professional integrity, ethical behaviour and accountability; s.10.4.7 duty of candour) and Standard 8 (professional and ethical communication; s.12.1); the open disclosure provisions of DHA ST-53 (ss.5.12–5.13, 6.2.13–6.2.16); the disclosure requirements of DOH IRMS V2 (ss.3.5, 3.12, 3.20.2.3.7); and the duties of honesty and information in FDL 4/2016 Arts 3 and 4, Federal Law No. 5 of 2019 Art. 17 and Federal Law No. 6 of 2023 Art. 8
Price
AED 349

Who this course is for

Physicians, dentists, nurses, midwives, pharmacists and allied health professionals licensed by MOHAP, DHA, DOH, SHA or DHCR, in government and private facilities.

Physicians Dentists Nurses and midwives Pharmacists Allied health professionals

Written for professionals licensed by any UAE authority: MOHAP, DHA, DOH, SHA or DHCR. Where the rules differ, the course explains the difference.

Your certificate

  • Your name, the course title and the approximate learning hours
  • Completion date and your final-assessment score
  • A unique certificate number with a QR code anyone can verify

The certificate states that the course is not accredited by any UAE health authority and that no CME/CPD points or credits are awarded. Whether it counts towards your licence renewal is for your licensing authority to decide.

Questions about this course

What are the four elements of open disclosure in DHA ST-53?

An apology or expression of regret, including the word sorry; a factual explanation of what happened; an opportunity for the patient to relate their experience; and an explanation of the steps being taken to manage the event and prevent it happening again. The course turns these into a conversation plan you can use.

Is saying sorry an admission of medical error in the UAE?

The course explains why an apology and a factual account are different from a finding of medical error, which only a Medical Liability Committee can make. Module 5 helps you word an apology without speculation, blame or legal conclusions. It is not legal advice, so involve your insurer when a claim is possible.

Is open disclosure the same as incident reporting?

No. Incident reporting and notification inform your facility and the authority; disclosure is the honest conversation with the patient or family. Module 1 defines each using DHA ST-53 and ST-66, and module 3 uses the DOH severity levels and the definitions of near miss, adverse event and sentinel event to decide when disclosure is needed.

Does the course cover disclosure to families and in difficult situations?

Module 7 adapts disclosure for children, patients who lack capacity, bereaved families, events affecting several patients, and different professions and settings. It also covers holding the conversation with a professional interpreter where needed, and planning follow-up until the matter is closed.

Will this course help if I failed to disclose an error in the past?

Module 8 covers supporting colleagues after harm and showing insight and remediation after a failure of candour. The course is independent and not accredited by any UAE health authority, so it cannot change an outcome or replace ordered training unless the authority accepts it; seek legal advice on any open matter.

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