“The percentage of citizens who are unable to fulfill their personal needs has reached 4.5 percent,” said the study. “There are about 48,000 citizens who are in dire need of home health care in Makkah province alone.”
According to a report in Sunday's Al-Riyadh newspaper, the study noted a substantial increase in the number of diabetic patients in the Kingdom. Recessive gene disorders that are more likely to occur in consanguineous marriages also ranked high. Patients requiring long-term home care primarily includes those injured in traffic accidents.
The study noted that the Center for Home Health Care at the National Guard in Jeddah extended service to more than 2,824 patients between 1997 and 2010, “especially those affected by cancer and age-related ailments, ranged between a few weeks and a number of years.”
The study said that nearly 70 percent of the home health care services are in the field of nursing.
“The department, in cooperation with the Charitable Society for Women, established Dar Al-Aman in 2003, which treats chronic patients. It was also instrumental in establishing Dar Al-Diyafa at Princess Noura Center for Tumors at King Abdul Aziz Medical City under the National Guard in Jeddah in 2004.”
As per the directive of Dr. Bandar Al-Qanawi, executive director general for health affairs at the National Guard, the department started providing new home health care services, such as intravenous antibiotic injections, chemotherapy and pain management.
About 12 percent of elderly Saudis require home health care. Nearly 53 percent of patients prefer to spend their recuperation periods at their homes.
