Last Tuesday, the Assistant Deputy Minister of Health for Support and Employment, Mr. Ibrahim Hafez, opened the First Forum of the Self-Employment Program, held by the MOH Self-Employment General Development in Riyadh, under the theme: “Developmental Plans and Future Vision”. The inauguration was attended by the Director-General of Self-Employment, Dr. Khaled Khedr, as well as the self-employment officials throughout the Kingdom's regions and hospitals.
According to Dr. Khedr, the forum aims to enhance communication and coordination between the programs, health affairs directorates, and the Self-Employment General Department. It also seeks to exchange visions and opinions on the issues relevant to self-employment programs, placing particular emphasis on the future developmental plans, and discussing the challenges and impediments confronting self-employment programs, as well as putting forward proper solutions for such problems, so as to come up with recommendations giving rise to self-employment in the Ministry. On the sidelines of the forum, three workshops have been organized, addressing these issues: What do we want from self-employment? - Communication and coordination between the programs, health affairs directorates, and the Self-Employment General Department – Challenges of self-employment.
Dr. Khedr explained that there are two objectives related to the self-employment programs to be highlighted in the forum; i.e. the Electronic Employment System, the plans and organization of which have been formerly set, and standardizing the differentiation criteria to all applicants, as well as the self-employment organizational regulation, currently undergoing its final stages, which will be approved by the competent authority; whereupon the implementing regulation will be set.
“The Ministry spares no effort in an effort to adopt the self-employment system in its hospitals. This will help provided high-quality health services for patients. The Ministry, thus, is keen to attain the aspired level, to fulfill the Leaderships directives and aspirations, under the follow-up of His Excellency the Minister of Health, Dr. Abdulaziz al-Rabeeah,” said Dr. Khedr.
“As part of the developmental plan,” Dr. Khedr added, “the Self-Employment General Department will launch a web site for its employees, and embed it into the MOH Portal, seeking to enhance communication between the department and self-employment employees, and exchange opinions, visions and remarks, as well as providing solutions for any problem facing employees.”