“Medical reports and traffic statistics show that road crashes in the Kingdom are the main reason for deaths, making it a great challenge facing the health sector,” Prince Miteb told the conference.
“This situation necessitates preparing qualified manpower to deal with road accident victims efficiently in order to reduce its negative impact,” he said.
The prince said the conference marked the 20th anniversary of the advanced national program to save accident victims. He also commended the National Guard’s efforts to improve the living conditions of citizens. He hoped that the forum would contribute to providing advanced training to the medical personnel, meeting the hopes and aspirations of the government.
Saud Al-Turki, chairman of the advanced training program to save accident victims, said the National Guard had conducted 745 training programs benefiting 10,598 doctors. There are 23 centers in various parts of the Kingdom to receive accident victims.
He underscored the cooperation between the program and the College of American Surgeons. “This cooperation resulted in the formation of a databank on road accidents in the Kingdom in 2010,” he said.
The forum was attended by Dr. John Kortbeek, a specialist in general surgery and critical care in the US, who commended the National Guard’s efforts in training doctors to provide advanced care to accident victims.
Dr. Bandar Al-Qanawi, executive director of National Guard health care, also addressed the opening session and thanked Prince Miteb for his support to the department and its programs.
