Forty new hospitals and 100 primary health care centers (PHCs) are being built every year throughout the Kingdom to offer health care services to citizens, the disclosure was presented at the inaugural session of the ‘Saudi Ministry of Health and HIMSS Middle East Conference and Exhibition’ at the Four Seasons Hotel yesterday.

Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, who opened the conference and exhibition yesterday, said the Kingdom has embarked on gigantic health projects with the generous funding of the government under the leadership of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and assisted by Crown Prince Salman, second deputy premier and minister of defense.

To increase efficiency in health care services, the minister said that some 70 new IT programs have been introduced by MoH to connect the health care providers, which are dispersed across the Kingdom.

More than 1,200 delegates from all parts of the Kingdom took part in the two-day event. In addition, some 40 local and foreign exhibitors displayed their products and services at the exhibition.

The Saudi government has allocated SR 242.7 million specifically for the development of health care facilities under its ninth development plan covering the period from 2010- 2014. This figure represents almost 17 percent of the total federal budget and is 82.4 percent higher than the last five-year plans. The current focus is on developing the infrastructure and health care personnel further.

Besides his previous allocation of SR 15 billion for health development projects, King Abdullah allocated another SR 16 billion last month for new health projects.

There is some 376 hospitals and 2,000 PHCs in the Kingdom. The PHCs are expected to double by 2020. In addition to specialized hospitals, five more medical cities are being built to cater to the medical needs of patients from all parts of the Kingdom.

In support of intensive government-backed efforts to further enhance the Saudi health care framework, the Ministry of Health (MoH) has partnered with HIMSS, a US-based non-profit organization advocating the optimal use of IT and management systems for advanced health care, in organizing the “Saudi Ministry of Health & HIMSS Middle East Conference and Exhibition,” the minister said.

The conference will cover crucial aspects of health care, IT integration and deployment. The topics, which will be discussed, include, means of implementing structured profiles to exchange health information between hospitals and regions and the ultimate step to building intelligent hospitals and harnessing the value of stored health information, among other subjects.

Dr. Mohamed bin Hamzah Khoshaim, vice minister of Health for Planning and Development, affirmed that the conference will provide a clear vision over the MOH’s e-health strategies and how to maintain its globally pioneering role in the provision of high quality health care services, both at present and in the future.

“The conference will shed light on the latest developments in the field of health technology worldwide drawing attention to the pivotal role of e-health, and its contributions to maintaining the highest possible quality of health care services for beneficiaries across the world.”

The ministry’s current e-health program covers five basic health regions, 13 health provinces, and about 300 hospitals.

Dr. Abdullah bin Ahmed Al-Weheibi, adviser to the minister and supervisor general of ICT, elaborated on the latest information and updates regarding e-health projects accomplished in the Kingdom.

Meanwhile, George Halferson, the chairman of the board and the executive directors of Kaiser Permanent group of hospitals in the United States of America, and Denis Giokas, the executive director of technology department at Canada Health Infoway institution in Canada, are set to discus the future approaches and visions related to the use of information technology in developing the quality of health care.