RIYADH, 15 March 2005 — Crown Prince Abdullah will inaugurate tomorrow new state-of the-art facilities worth more than SR250 million at the National Guard Health Affairs.
“Some of these facilities were upgraded to meet the increasing demand for treatment in diabetes, maternity, pediatrics, oncology and cardiology. The crown prince will also lay the foundation for a medical college and a trauma center,” Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, NGHA chief executive officer, told reporters here.
He added that the new facilities and services would enable the hospital to offer integrated services at all levels. “The new facilities will increase the number of beds from 850 to 1,000,” Dr. Rabeeah said. NGHA has hospitals in Riyadh, Dammam, Jeddah and Al-Hasa.
Chief Operating Officer Dr. Abdullah Al-Ammari said that with the new facilities, the hospital could serve more patients in different departments. The new dialysis center will have 38 dialysis units instead of the present 16. Similarly, he noted that the neonatal center will have its number of beds doubled from 20. “We have the biggest emergency department in the region,” he said and noted that the section could accommodate 100 patients at a time.
He said the new college of medicine plans to enroll 200 students in the next five years. Three months ago, a total of 30 Saudi students were enrolled for the course, he added.
Dr. Ammari said the NGHA is mindful of its obligations toward the Saudization program. “We were able to achieve 70 percent Saudization of medical consultants, 94 percent dentists, 89 percent pharmacists and 46 percent allied staff,” he said, adding that there was a shortage of Saudi nurses.
“We will intensify our campaign to enroll more Saudis in nursing by offering them attractive packages,” he said.
