HEALTHCARE

PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP TO TRANSFORM SAUDI HEALTHCARE

There are more than 100 major healthcare projects valued at SAR 48 billion being developed by the private sector in Saudi Arabia, according to the Ministry of Health.

Some of the public-private partnership projects include the establishment and operation of two medical cities in the north and south of the kingdom, the development and operation of 900 beds to provide medical rehabilitation and long-term care services, and the upgrading of primary health care services in more than 200 centres. These are in addition to partnerships that provide air medical transport services and radiology services.

The ministry is also streamlining the process of issuing licenses and related regulations to support the practice of commercial activities, as well as facilitate investors’ interest in the health sector. The Ministry of Health has established a call centre to provide services to the business sector as part of its Vision 2030 objective to localise the pharmaceutical
and medical device sectors.

The recent World Health Forum in Riyadh in October attracted 26,000 healthcare professionals from 30 countries. The forum was aimed at creating integration between the public and private sectors, provide investment opportunities, enable dialogue aimed at achieving the kingdom's Vision 2030 objectives and advance digital transformation in the healthcare sector, SPA said.

 

HEALTHCARE PROJECTS

Some of the new projects inaugurated during the event include an Advanced Medical Technologies Co. Factory being developed by Al-Dawaa Medical Services Co. Together with China’s BGI Group, Al-Dawaa Medical Services Co. signed several agreements in the field of logistical services to develop and manufacture medical devices and provide healthcare services.

The Saudi-based company also reviewed the services of First Company for Transfer of Healthcare, a subsidiary whose strategic vision focuses on being one of the pillars of transformation in healthcare in Saudi Arabia through technology and innovation. It aims to contribute to realising the health sector targets underlined in Vision 2030, while keeping pace with transformations in the sector at local and international levels.

King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Center (KFSHRC) also signed a memorandum of understanding with Kite-Gilead Sciences Company to collaborate in clinical research and experiments, medical education, scientific exchange and patients’ access to innovative treatments, with special focus on cellular therapy, blood diseases and tumours to enhance patient care in Saudi Arabia. The MoU will last for three years, with the option to extend it.

“The MoU is part of strategic plans to build up partnerships and co-operation with global medical institutions to develop specialised research and medical services according to the highest standards under the entrepreneurship and expertise enjoyed by KFSHRC, as an advanced medical institution at the regional and international levels,” the companies said.

The MoU will enhance co-operation between the two institutions in the fields of exchanging clinical, educational and research expertise in tumour diagnosis and treatment, and will include providing the healthcare community with the latest information to improve the understanding of available treatment options, as well as supporting patients with world-class service.
  

DIGITAL HEALTHCARE

A key objective of Saudi Vision 2030 is to integrate technology and digital service in healthcare. Management consultancy McKinsey & Co. believes digital healthcare could play a vital role in increasing healthcare efficiency and producing better outcomes, unlocking as much as USD 27 billion by 2030.

The country has already embarked on digitising services since 2016 and the pandemic only accelerated that trend, with digital offerings including consumer-centric solutions, specifically virtual care.

Virtual interactions constitute 41% of the potential benefit, producing between SAR 6 billion and SAR 9 billion in savings by 2030, McKinsey said.

“Patient self-care and self-services account for 17% of the potential benefit, totalling between SAR 2.6 billion and SAR 6.6 billion by 2030. These will be key to Saudi Arabia’s new model of care that emphasises disease prevention,” McKinsey said in its report on the country’s digital healthcare service opportunities.

“They include chronic-disease applications that facilitate prescription adherence and pill management, solutions that promote healthy diets and physical activity, and digital diagnostics for home-collected blood panels and screenings. The adoption rate of these solutions is low, so most of the potential from scaling them has yet to be realised.”