The health minister made his remarks at a recent lecture held at the Children's National Medical Center in Washington.
The health minister was addressing doctors and more than 300 medical interns at the pediatric hospital during his recent visit to the United States.
“We are thankful for the magnanimity of King Abdullah, who positively responded to several requests from 16 countries to separate conjoined twins in the Kingdom,” Al-Rabeeah told the interns during his lecture.
He added that Saudi Arabia, which he said is known as “The Kingdom of Humanity,” has earned the goodwill of the world community due to the benevolence, compromise and dialogue preached and practiced by King Abdullah.
On instructions from the king, conjoined twins are separated free of charge at the King Abdulaziz Medical City in Riyadh.
The travel and accommodation expenses of the twins and their parents are borne by the king.
During the lecture, the minister also made a presentation on the achievements of the Kingdom in successfully separating 29 conjoined twins over the past 20 years. Besides the Kingdom, the children came from countries such as Sudan, Yemen, Egypt, Malaysia, Philippines, Poland, Morocco and Iraq.
Due to the Kingdom’s reputation for breakthroughs and innovations in the separation of conjoined twins, physicians and researchers from all around the world seek the opportunity to come to the medical city’s National Guard Health Affairs for the opportunity to work and study under Al-Rabeeah and his multidisciplinary surgical team.
During his visit, the minister also participated in the Saudi-US symposium held recently in Atlanta. He presented a working paper on the history and current trends of health care in the Kingdom. He called on US businessmen to invest in the health care sector in the Kingdom, which has been expanding quickly.
