The Ministry of Health (MOH) has attracted a constellation of consulting and specialized experts from the Unites States of America, Canada, and Europe; in order to upgrade services and improve the health care level at intensive care units, emergency sections, newborn intensive care units, travail wards, and maternity wards. As such, teams from the University of Minnesota, McMaster University, Canadian Neonatal Network, University of Liverpool, University of Washington, and American College of Surgeons reached the Kingdom.
This statement was made by His Excellency the Deputy Minister for Planning and Development, Dr. Mohammed bin Hamzah Khushaim, who went on adding that the MOH's hospitals witness a great developmental leap these days; in order to upgrade their services provided in the intensive care units. Thus, it attracted the medical expertise of university professors, with the aim of raising the performance and upgrading the full-fledged and inclusive health care level in all the Kingdom's hospitals. Meanwhile, the specialized medical teams of Minnesota University keep paying visits to number of hospitals in Riyadh, Al-Qassim, and Eastern Province as a first phase. The medical team paid visits to eight maternity hospitals thus far; they spent nearly two months in each hospital for hands-on practice at newborn units.
And the medical team trained all the nursing crew on the latest methods of the nursing and therapeutic care for this group of patients.
And the Deputy Minister for Planning and Development pointed out that the Ministry of Health (MOH) reached an agreement with the University of Minnesota drawing on several teams in the adult intensive care field, giving-birth field, and children's intensive care field.
Dr. Khushaim made clear that the Ministry of Health signed a contract with the American College of Surgeons to draw on its electronic system with regard to monitoring and following up the results of the surgical operations which are currently applied at many of American hospitals. This in turn will enable the MOH to follow up all the surgical operations, especially serious ones which are conducted in the Kingdom's hospitals to be up-to-date with their results and compare them to their counterparts in the United States of America. As known, the program bears the name of NSQIP; it is a program improving the surgical performance to the effect that the performance indicators are gathered in a database through a specialized team, and this takes place through the direct coordination with the College and its experts.
This program was initiated in the United States of America ten years ago, with hundreds of hospitals participating in it. Thus, the MOH's participation in this program comes out of the MOH's interest in innovative ideas and performance measurement culture. Also, the Ministry of Health (MOH) signed a contract with the University of Washington to conduct the health survey for the population for five years and train the Saudi workers according to the global standards.
Within the same vein, Dr. Khushaim pointed out that the Ministry of Health (MOH) initiated Dealing Professional Development Program to the effect that so far, 500 employees were trained on the good dealing mechanisms with patients and those frequenting hospitals. Also, the MOH in cooperation with College of Public Health of Liverpool University trained those working in the malaria eradication field and established and operated a fully-fledged center for malaria researches in Jazan. Additionally, 60-person training program on the infection combat field was signed with the American Hospitals Authority for one year, as well as training more than 90 hospital directors for two weeks on methods of hospital management and applying quality mechanisms in them.
Meanwhile, the Assistant Undersecretary of Planning and Training, Dr. Mohammed bin Fouad Zamkhshari, pointed out that the Ministry of Health (MOH), in cooperation with the Canadian Neonatal Network, signed an agreement allowing the MOH using pre-term birth follow-up system which is used by the entire Canadian neonatal networks. Thus, the Ministry of Health (MOH) will be able make a real comparison with Canada and the states joining the Network; to detect any deterioration in the health care provided to the newborn; to identify disorder aspects and have them addressed.
He added that there are several other states which joined this network, and the MOH will be the first service provider in the region joining this global program, which made a success more than ten years ago.
Dr. Zamakhshari went on to add that a deal has been struck with McMaster University, one of the world universities, to cooperate with the Center to bring out ten clinical pieces of evidence in 2013, work on the mechanisms of their application, measure their performance indicators and their impacts on the health care in the MOH's facilities, as recognized, and the vital role which these pieces of evidence play in terms of diminishing the disparity in the service provided. Also, this is in order to have a scientific reference for the common diseases with regard to any of the MOH's health practitioners.
For his part, the Assistant Undersecretary for Hospitals Affairs, Dr. Aqeel Al-Ghamdi, pointed out that the phase of work development in the neonatal units comprises the first step to implement this program. And as an initial step to implement the program in the rest of the Kingdom's maternity and children's hospitals, during the last year 2012, the program was implemented in 4 hospitals; they are Children's Hospital at King Saud Medical Hospital Al-Yamamah Hospital, and Maternity and Children's Hospital in both Dammam and Jeddah (Al-Mosadiya). The training is conducted by physicians, nurses, and respiratory treatment specialists, chemists working at neonatal section of University of Minnesota. In 2013, the cooperation was extended to include the above-mentioned hospitals for the second year; and the program is to be implemented at other 4 hospitals for one year. These hospitals are Maternity and Children's Hospital in Buraidah, Maternity and Children's Hospital in Al-Ahsa, King Fahad Central Hospital in Jizan, and Maternity and Children's Hospital in Madinah. The medical team has already paid a visit to Maternity and Children's Hospital in Buraidah.
Furthermore, during this visit, the developmental Program for Labor and Birth Ward is to be implemented at 16 hospitals out of maternity and children's hospitals; it is to be implemented in 8 hospitals this year. These hospitals are to include King Saud Medical City, Al-Yammah, maternity and children's hospitals in Dammam, Jeddah, Buraidah, Makkah, Madinah, and Al-Ahsa. The program has already been implemented at Maternity and Children's Hospitals in Dammam.
The Assistant Undersecretary Minister for Hospitals Affairs, Dr. Al-Ghamdi, made clear that the work development of the Neonatal Intensive Care and the program has been implemented at 4 hospitals so far; these hospitals are King Saud Medical Hospital, Al-Yammah Hospital, Maternity and Children's Hospital in Dammam, Maternity and Children's Hospital in Jeddah. Also, the visit includes developing work in the Adult Intensive Care and the program is to be implemented at 4 hospitals this year. These hospitals are King Saud medical Hospital, Dammam Medical Complex, King Fahad Hospital in Jeddah, and King Fahad Hospital in Hofuf.