“We are here to serve you. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, May Allah protect them, have given their directives to provide you with the best health services, and help you perform your Hajj rituals. Do not be afraid, illness will not be an obstacle, and we will help you complete your Hajj rituals, Allah’s Willing," stated His Excellency the Minister of Health, Eng. Fahd bin Abdulrahman Al-Jalajel.
This comes in his speech to inpatient pilgrims at hospitals of the Holy Sites, while congratulating them on the Advent of Eid Al-Adha. The speech conveys the reality witnessed by patient pilgrims at health facilities of Makkah and the Holy Sites, meanwhile highlighting the various expressions of thanks extended by pilgrims of different nationalities for the health services provided to them at health facilities of the Ministry of Health (MOH).
Through these health facilities disseminated across the Holy Sites with a geographical distribution that facilitates easy access to them, MOH continues to serve pilgrims by qualified Saudi medical, technical, and administrative cadres (totaling about 25,000 employees), who were mandated from different regions of the Kingdom to ensure the provision of best services to pilgrims at health facilities.
MOH has enhanced 23 hospitals (including Seha Virtual Hospital and the mobile field hospital) and 147 healthcare centers (HCCs) with cutting-edge equipment and technologies to provide pilgrims with various advanced surgeries and services, including open-heart surgeries, heart attacks treatment, dialysis services, endoscopic procedures, and other services.
Also, MOH has equipped an ambulance fleet, featuring 175 ambulances; to quickly handle and rescue emergencies, as well as preparing airplane landing sites at MOH’s facilities to facilitate aeromedical evacuation. Since the beginning of this year’s Hajj season, MOH has intensified its awareness campaigns that contributed to the success of MOH’s health plans with no outbreaks, as well as reducing COVID-19 and sunstroke cases, despite the high temperatures. MOH has issued Pilgrim Health Guide in several languages, including health guidelines for pilgrims throughout their Hajj rituals at the Holy Sites.
During this year’s Hajj season, MOH has provided a variety of services in several languages, via 937 call center, in terms of responding to pilgrims’ inquiries and health consultations, handling all notifications about health services provided to them urgently, searching for missing inpatient pilgrims at all health facilities, in addition to receiving pilgrims calls when they need heath care.
The patient pilgrim satisfaction with healthcare service at MOH’s health facilities can be measured through their words, their commendation for MOH’s distinct health services, their prayers to Allah for MOH and its Heroes, as well as their smiles to medical cadres that provide them with the best services.
It is worth mentioning that that MOH’s plans for this year’s Hajj season began a year ago, because MOH, with the end of each Hajj season, starts its preparations for next Hajj season. Thus, since early this year’s Hajj season, MOH has mobilized all efforts and geared up its facilities, starting from land, air, and sea ports, passing through hospitals of Makkah and Madinah, ending with hospitals and HCCs of the Holy Sites. Also, MOH keeps on its efforts until checking on safety of the last departing pilgrims.