Dusit Thani Dubai may be 14 years old, but it is ahead of the game in its approach to disabled guests. Hotelier finds out more about the disability awareness training the hotel conducted with Dubai consultancy, Ebdaah
In March 2014, a law was issued by Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, H.H Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to protect the rights of people with disabilities in Dubai.
The law reflects his vision to strengthen the position of disabled people in society by providing them with the services necessary to them, and it supports Federal Law No. 29 of 2006, concerning the rights of people with special needs.
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Dubai authorities were required by the new law to cooperate to provide full public services to disabled people, along with healthcare services and educational opportunities.
To ensure effective implementation of this, H.H Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council issued a resolution to form a higher committee for the protection of the rights of people with disabilities in Dubai, and this is something that complements his initiative, ‘My community ... A city for everyone’, which he launched in November 2013.
It aimed to help disabled people overcome social barriers and prevent them from being the target of discrimination or abuse.
These government initiatives helped inspire Dusit Thani Dubai to reach out to Ebdaah, a Dubai-based consultancy, which among other things, delivers disability awareness training to educational institutes and hospitality businesses.
For hospitality, Ebdaah provides training on customer service building audits for accessibility, advice on reasonable adjustments to be made, and information on new building design and accessibility policies.
THE RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES
The 321-key Dusit Thani already has a disabled member of staff working in the laundry department. Nitin Bablani, who has Down’s syndrome, has been employed at the hotel for the last eight years, and is praised widely as a hard-working and committed staff member.
Dusit Thani prides itself in offering employment opportunities to disabled people, and according to Danelle Ruth Palang, director of marketing and communications, the property “has always had a heart for disability”.
Before working with Ebdaah, the existing facilities included wide doors on all rooms and low handles and bathroom features. The hotel also had one accessible guest room.
Additionally, DusitThani has a policy in place whereby disabled people who book a deluxe room are upgraded to a suite on arrival.
The hotel also has a system to notify housekeeping, room service and bell service staff using the code ‘SA’ (special attention) when a disabled guest checks in. An emergency response team is also in place and has a special board to alert them of the room numbers of disabled guests, should an emergency evacuation take place.
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