Unveiling a budget of SR7.2 billion for the fiscal year 2012, Health Ministry spokesman Dr. Khalid Al-Mirghalani said the ministry plans to construct 12 new hospitals, including the proposed Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Hospital to be built in the Riyadh.
Speaking at a press conference at the ministry headquarters, the spokesman said the projects will provide comprehensive integrated health services for citizens in all parts of the Kingdom.
Explaining the details of the ministry's future plans, Al-Mirghalani said the ministry would carry out the implementation of 67 newly-approved projects in nearly 20 health regions spread throughout the Kingdom.
In addition to the 12 new hospitals, which will have a total capacity of 3,100 beds, the ministry will build 15 integrated clinics in Riyadh, a center for tumors in Madinah, a center for forensic medicine in Jazan, a center for cancer treatment, specialized centers for dental care and oversee the installation of an electronic security system to protect infants and upgrade housing of health workers.
The ministry will also install standby generators in 262 hospitals and improve intensive care and emergency department facilities.
Meanwhile, Dr. Ibrahim Al-Omar, director general of blood banks and laboratories at the ministry, announced on Monday that the government laboratory at the King Fahd Hospital in Jeddah received accreditation from the Central Board of Accreditation for Healthcare Institutions (CBAHI).
He said officials from the World Health Organization visited the center last year and were fully satisfied with the facilities and services available at the laboratory, which process around 3 million samples of blood a year.
Al-Omar said that the laboratory has also trained some 150 health graduates in the field. The laboratory is fully computerized and connected to all wards and departs at the hospital.
“Doctors can see clinical reports from the laboratory at the click of a button,” Al-Omar said.
