In implementation of the gracious directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, May Allah protect him, to provide and develop the dialysis services in line with the latest global standards applied by the Ministry of Health (MOH), His Excellency the Minister of Health, Dr. Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Rabeeah, has signed at his ministerial office today morning the second and final part of the Dialysis Services Provision Project with a US company called, “DaVita HealthCare”, targeting both types of dialysis (blood and peritoneal) for all patients whether adults or young.
This project is reckoned a redemptive treatment for those patients with chronic kidney failure, who receive health care at the MOH dialysis centers and units, as it provides a high quality remedial service.
Within the same vein, Dr. Al-Rabeeah has lauded the support of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and his relentless attention to health services, meanwhile, commending the invitation of the big global companies to provide high quality health services to citizens all over the Kingdom’s regions and governorates.
Besides, it didn’t escape Dr. Al-Rabeeah’s notice to extend his immense thanks and gratitude to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, for his constant keenness on the citizens’ health, as manifested by contracting with the largest global companies specialized in the care of patients with renal failure.
In a press statement following signing the contract, Dr. Al-Rabeeah said, “Six international companies from the United States, Germany and Sweden had been invited to implement this project,” noting that the second part of this project has been awarded to the American “DaVita HealthCare” Company, with a total cost of SR 979.091.809, which is considered as an extension to the first part that had been awarded to the German “Die Firm” Company.
“Due to the annual increasing number of patients with renal failure, meanwhile, the insufficiency of centers providing the services of blood and peritoneal dialysis, the ministry has offered to purchase such dialysis services making use of the foreign experts, on condition that these services are provided by the mother companies,” said Dr. Al-Rabeeah, adding that this step aims to transfer the expertise of these foreign companies to the Kingdom, accommodate the increasing numbers of patients, promote the level of therapeutic services, provide the specialized medical staff, and offer medicines, medical supplies, consumables, and devices, that is to be added to their maintenance at all dialysis centers.
He went on adding that many foreign companies had been invited to establish this project, but it was finally awarded to the German and American companies with a total cost of SR 1,958,183,618. Dr. Al-Rabeeah noted that the project will be implemented in three phases during five Gregorian years.
Furthermore, Dr. Al-Rabeeah has pointed out that the service provider will establish and rent dialysis centers, disseminated all over the regions and governorates, and will provide all the necessaries of furnishing and equipping with devices, consumables tools, and the integrated medical staff, according to the highest level of standards and quality; in an endeavor to provide the most effective and distinctive treatment methods.
Besides, Dr. Al-Rabeeah indicated that the MOH Supervisory Committee of the National Program for the Care of Chronic Renal Failure Patients will follow up the work progress of the project, through the central committee and sub-committees all over the health affairs general directorates in the Kingdom’s regions.
For his part, the Deputy Minister of Health for Hospitals Affairs, Dr. Aqeel Al-Ghamdi, has highlighted that the benefits of this project include providing dialysis services for patients during holidays in the various Kingdom’s regions, as well as in Europe and USA if there are branches for the company in these countries, after coordination between the MOH Central Committee and the company providing the service.
“The benefits include also providing peritoneal dialysis services, which will offer many advantages such as freedom of movement, work and going on with studying,” said Dr. Al- Ghamdi, adding that this project, moreover, will contribute to promoting the curative care quality, as well as employing 30% of the Saudi cadres at some 167 dialysis centers, thus providing new job opportunities for citizens, in addition to the establishment of 74 centers by foreign companies, which will pump more billion-worth foreign investments into the Saudi market, giving a boost to the economic growth, as well as providing dialysis services for all patients in need throughout the Kingdom’s governorates and regions.
Dr. Al-Ghamdi highlighted that the Ministry will save, through this project, the financial resources spent on the maintenance, renovation, construction and replacement of the dialysis centers, to be invested in other services for the citizens’ welfare. Besides, Dr. Al-Ghamdi indicated that among the benefits of this project is the training of the national cadres on the latest international techniques.