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Saudi Arabia has introduced universal health coverage in 2019, ensuring that every Saudi citizen and resident can access healthcare at no cost. The government not only oversees the provision of these services but also serves as the primary source of funding for the system. The Ministry of Health (MOH) is tasked with regulating the healthcare system and ensuring service delivery across the country.Funding for the MOH primarily derives from the annual government budget, which is largely supported by oil revenues (Almodhen and Moneir, 2023)
The healthcare system is structured into three levels: primary, secondary, and tertiary care. Primary care is offered through primary healthcare centres (PHCs), which deliver essential services such as preventive care, health education, and screening. Secondary care is provided by hospitals and specialised centres that offer more advanced services, including diagnostic procedures, surgical operations, and emergency care. For the most complex treatments, tertiary care is available at specialised hospitals that focus on procedures such as transplants and cancer therapy.
Despite these advancements, the system faces several challenges, such as a shortage of healthcare professionals, insufficient preventive care, and significant health disparities between urban and rural areas . (Gurajala, 2023) These challenges are addressed in the ‘Vision 2030’ initiative, a government programme aimed at improving public service sectors.
As part of the initiative, in 2022, Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health established the Health Holding Company (HHC)Funding for the MOH primarily derives from the annual government budget, which is largely supported by oil revenues (Almodhen and Moneir, 2023, a state-owned enterprise designed to transform the nation's healthcare system. The HHC's mandate includes taking over the provision of healthcare services, while the Ministry’s role is shifting from service provision to supervisory and regulatory role.
Key reforms that HHC is responsible for implementing include:
Decentralisation: the HHC is responsible for creating and delegating the delivery of healthcare services to approximately 20 regional clusters, to encourage local involvement and improve responsiveness to community needs.
Privatisation: the HHC will privatise numerous hospitals and primary health centres.
Digitisation: the strategy includes a push towards digital healthcare, enhancing data interoperability and expanding access to digital and virtual medical services. This is particularly crucial for the roughly 16% of the population living in remote areas with limited healthcare services access.
Specialised Care Services: the HHC will offer specialised services such as cancer care, renal rehabilitation, and critical care in cardiology and trauma. A new Model of Care, encompassing 42 interventions across six healthcare systems, aims to standardise and improve treatment based on evidence-based practices.
Community Health: The HHC will also focus on disease prevention and early detection, aiming to improve community health.
Workforce Development: The transformation plan includes workforce planning and development, with an emphasis on improving training standards and ensuring an adequate supply of healthcare professionals to meet the country's growing needs.
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The national PHR
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The MoH made the announcement while signing a cooperation agreement with the Digital Government Authority (DGA) in order to merge all health sector platforms (including XXX) and make the Sehhaty app the national e-platform for providing healthcare services to individuals.
The agreement between the MoH and DGA aimed at several matters, such as merging the health sector apps and platforms and improving the patients' experience in the health sector as well as facilitating and accelerating the deal with the government bodies. Furthermore, it intends to provide consultation services with regard to digital government and achieve efficiency of digital spending for government services. The agreement was aimed at positively impacting patients: through the unification of data sources, its goal is to achieve a better level of services in the healthcare sector, ultimately increasing patients' satisfaction rate.
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Ministry of Health, 2023. "Sehhaty" Platform. Available at: https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/eServices/Sehhaty/Pages/default.aspx. (Accessed: 1 November 2023).
Ministry of Health (n.d.). Health Sector Transformation Strategy, Vision 2030. Available at: https://www.moh.gov.sa/en/Ministry/vro/Documents/Healthcare-Transformation-Strategy.pdf [Accessed 1 August 2024].