The Ministry of Health's Assistant Agency for Supply and Employment concluded on Thursday a two-day workshop on self-employment of hospitals. The workshop was attended by directors of self-employment at the directorates, directors of referential hospitals, and directors of staff affairs at the directorates, and hospitals concerned.
The Assistant Deputy Minister for Supply and Employment, Ibrahim bin Saeed Hafiz, explained that the first stage of recommendations reached by the workshop includes transition of vacant positions and non-Saudi occupied jobs; while the second stage will count the number of Saudi-occupied positions according to their categories.
For his part, the General Supervisor of Self-Employment Programs, Dr. Khalid bin Khidr, underscored that after the Ministry of Health (MOH) has tried numerous employment methodologies at hospitals over the past decades, passing through the full employment system of companies and partial employment system of some facilities at the ministry, it was necessary to find an alternative that achieves a flexible system of employment at health facilities in the Kingdom to raise performance efficiency in the provided health services.
Hence, the MOH was one of the first health agencies that applied a new system of employment that combines private sector's flexibility, Ministry of Labor's systems, and finance parameters under the title (Self-Employment Programs) in order to realize professional support for health services. This arrangement has caused remarkable difference in health services, particularly in medical cities and relatively in the remaining facilities. Thus, success of this program was realized. He added that the start of applying this program to the remaining MOH hospitals is a quantum leap for services in the future, taking into account the importance of the integrated systematic performance of gradual transition with stressing on accuracy of bases.
On the other hand, the attendees of the meeting agreed on a number of recommendations reached by the workshop. These recommendations include specifying dates of meetings so that they become biweekly, appointing coordinators by regions and hospitals to communicate with the committee members, as well as preparing a portfolio for the transition strategy and sending it to the regions to view stages of the transition process. The functional structure of employees at hospitals are printed from the system and reviewed by regions. All members should view the coming stage - the first in the transition process - which will tackle the vacant jobs and non-Saudi occupied positions.