In its latest statistical figures, the World Health Organization (WHO) has revealed the increase of the age average rate in the Kingdom from 69 years in 1990 to 75 years in 2011 (77 years for females/74 years for males) since the date of birth, according to the WHO Health Indicators Compilation for the year (2013).
The Government of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, represented by the Ministry of Health (MOH), has paid great attention to therapeutic and public health programs, especially preventive programs and those controlling non-communicable genetic diseases and communicable diseases; in an endeavor to maintain the health and safety of citizens and future generations, Allah Willing.
Moreover, the MOH focused on the primary health care programs, considering them the basis for the health services system, given that the MOH managed, through these programs, to provide health services to all citizens wherever they are, in a such manner that ensures the provision of basic immunizations, vaccines and maternal and child health care. This comes within the framework of MOH Strategic Plan, most notably the National Project for Integrated and Comprehensive Health Care.
Therefore, by the grace of Allah in the first place, and then as a result of this attention, the supervisors and those who are interested in this health domain have observed the improvement of health indicators per capita in the Kingdom.
Furthermore, the MOH has issued a recent report pointing out that health indicators in the Kingdom have significantly improved. These indicators illustrated that the mortality rate among children less than five years has decreased in the Kingdom from 44 cases per one thousand children in 1990 to 12 cases in 2012.
The report, also, showed that the infant mortality rate decreased from 34 cases per one thousand live babies in 1990 to 8 cases in 2012. In addition, the report revealed that the neonatal mortality rate decreased from 20 cases in 1990 to 5 cases per one thousand live neonates, while the mortality rate among mothers decreased from 48 cases per one hundred thousand live babies in 1990 to 14 cases in 2012.
It is worth mentioning that these positive percentages can be attributed to the Kingdom’s adoption of an integrated and comprehensive bundle of harmonious health services, ranging from primary, preventive, secondary and referential health care. Besides, the Kingdom introduced specialized and referential services, in addition to domestic medicine services, and the Visiting Physician and Quality and Accreditation programs.
The Kingdom, represented by the MOH, has targeted a number of diseases by vaccines through its expanded immunization programs which targeted 24 diseases in 1434H with a cost of more than half a billion Saudi riyals annually, compared to five diseases in 1399H. Thus, the percentage of immunization reached 98% of the basic vaccines; leading to a significant reduction in rates of the targeted diseases in this program.
Within the same vein, the Ministry has paid the immunization program since its inception all the attention, with the support of the state, May Allah protect it. As, by virtue of the Royal decree issued in 139H (corresponding to 1979), the birth certificates of children have been linked to the completion of basic vaccines doses against the targeted diseases. Over and above, the MOH entered a stage of getting rid of the measles, rubella and mumps; as it launched a widespread vaccination campaign against these diseases among the age group from 9 months to 24 years over the years of 1432H to 1434H. This campaign will continue in the coming years, Allah Willing. Finally, the MOH wishes to get rid of these diseases in the Kingdom by the next few years.