​The Ministry of Health (MOH) Strategy is coherent and consistent with the healthcare strategy in the Kingdom, ratified by the Council of Ministers' resolution No. (320), dated 17/9/1430, corresponding to 7/9/2009. Since the beginning of development plans in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 40 years ago, the improvement of healthcare services provided to the Saudi citizens was a strategic option adopted by the Leadership. This huge interest in developing healthcare is embodied and manifested in Article 31 of The Basic Law of Saudi Arabia, “the State shall protect public health and provide healthcare to every citizen”. In addition, this was also under the Eighth Development Plans, consisting of one concept; providing healthcare that meets the needs of the population in all over the Kingdom.

 

The Ministry has set this strategy, taking into consideration all the elements that would achieve the future vision in line with the development accomplished in health services sector around the world. In addition, the strategy is consistent with the roles played by the Ministry; the assigned authority to provide health services to the citizens, in addition to its responsibility of oversight and supervision of private sector facilities, as well as the development of legislation, rules and regulations for the provision of healthcare services to the citizens and residents of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

 

This strategy comes in response to a series of major challenges facing the healthcare sector in various countries around the world, including Saudi Arabia. There is a huge new level of awareness among service recipients and their health education, in addition to a high level of expectations of better health services that can be accessed easily in accordance with high quality standards. The health sector is also witnessing many challenges worldwide, such as the high costs of health services resulting from the accelerating development of medical technologies in hardware, equipment tools and advanced and expensive medical technologies, as well as the unremitting discoveries of new expensive drugs.

 

In addition, there are many other reasons for the rising demand for health care services, including the prevalence of chronic diseases, the diagnostic and therapeutic long term expensive care services, the increase of health awareness in the society, in addition to the increased demand for periodic checkup, risk factors monitoring and early disease detection and so on.

 

Through the current strategic plan, the Ministry of Health has implemented modern methodologies in providing health care services that makes the health system completely devoted to patients, or, in other words, a patient-centered health care system aiming to meet patients’ health needs in the right place at the right time. This covers everything starting from primary health care till specialized therapeutic services in a professional manner, preserving all patients’ rights, such as the right to know about their condition, the right to know the different treatment options, the right to choose their physician, and the right to be always treated with care and respect. These aspects didn't get a lot of attention in the past, but they are now one of the strategy’s main objectives. The Ministry of Health strategy has adopted the integrated and comprehensive health care approach as a method of providing services, and implemented it through the MOH’s Integrated and Comprehensive National Healthcare Project.

 

The MOH strategy includes other important aspects, such as health insurance, and the programs dedicated to study the role of cooperative health insurance, and considering including new segments of the community in it. It also includes the need to conduct studies on MOH hospitals in the future in terms of  privatization, the best management and operation practices, in accordance with the principles of economics, cost calculation, diversification of funding sources, and the optimal use of resources.

 

Nevertheless, huge health documents, articles, studies and research were used in preparing this strategy, in addition to numerous personal interviews and workshops, as well as the observations and suggestions filed to the Ministry from several bodies.