The Ministry of Health (MOH) continues providing preventive, therapeutic and health services for the pilgrims since their arrival in the Kingdom and during their performance of Hajj rituals and until their departure for homelands safely, Allah willing, through a package of hospitals and specialized health centers spread in all the Kingdom's land, sea and air ports; that is to be added to roads and cities passed by the pilgrims in their trip to Makkah and Holy Sites.
Director of Ajyad Emergency Hospital in Makkah and Consultant of Emergency Medicine Dr. Abdul Rahman Rashid Bakhsh underscored that the MOH has allocated the hospital to receive the emergency cases of patients and injured at the Holy Mosque and the central area surrounding it.
Bakhsh pointed out that the bed capacity of the hospital amounts to 52 beds distributed as follows: 32 beds for emergency cases, 20 beds for inpatients, 12 beds for intensive care and 8 beds for cardiac intensive care, adding that the hospital’s administration also supervises two other health centers located inside the Holy Mosque to provide swift ambulatory and therapeutic services for the pilgrims and visitors before being transported to hospital if necessary.
Speaking about the actual number of employees working in the hospital and health centers of the Holy Mosque, Dr. Bakhsh said the number of the hospital’s staff including physicians and technicians amounts to 54 physicians, 141 nurses and 30 technicians specialized in laboratories, radiation and pharmacy. As for the health centers, there are 11 physicians (including 3 specialists and 8 residents), in addition to 18 nurses working in shifts throughout the day.
He underscored that the Makkah Health Affairs General Directorate annually increases the number of physicians, technicians and nurses in the Holy Mosque’s hospital and health centers during Hajj and Umrah seasons in order to cope with the huge number of pilgrims and visitors and to provide quick and urgent services for the Guests of Allah.
Bakhsh noted that the Acting Minister of Health Engineer Adel bin Mohammed Faqih has ordered, during his latest visit to the hospital, to upgrade the hospital and health centers in the Holy Mosque through supplying it with all modern medical equipment and medicines to treat the chronic diseases affecting the visitors and pilgrims throughout the year as part of continuous endeavors to render the best health services for the Guests of Allah.
Dr. Bakhsh talked about the most common cases received by Ajyad hospital, saying that there are three categories (minor, mild and serious cases). He pointed out that the hospital’s physicians provide ambulatory services and treatment for the minor cases suffering from scratches, wounds and simple fractures until they leave the hospital. Regarding the mild cases, i.e. those suffering from some chronic diseases such as mild heart disorders, Dr. Bakhsh said they are hospitalized in the general intensive and cardiac care units.
As for the serious cases, whose health condition requires urgent surgical intervention or intensive medical care, Dr. Bakhsh said the hospital deals with them by providing urgent ambulatory services and immediate transportation to the nearest general or specialized hospital or to King Abdullah Medical City in Makkah.
In conclusion, Dr. Bakhsh reiterated that the hospital accommodates a separate isolation section, which is equipped with the latest technologies and equipment to isolate the suspected cases or those infected with any infectious or epidemic disease, adding that this comes as part of ongoing attempts to prevent the spread of the infection to the other people and to protect the pilgrims from diseases.