The Ministry of Health (MOH) has continued its preparation and readiness of its facilities for serving the guests of Allah during this year's Hajj season. MOH has prepared a number of hospitals and healthcare centers in Makkah, holy sites and Madinah, including 25 hospitals and 156 healthcare centers with a 5,000-bed capacity. More than 25,000 health practitioners are participating in serving the pilgrims. Also, MOH has operated 18 health points at the stations of the holy sites' train and equipped 180 ambulances and 17 emergency centers at Al-Jamrat Bridge.
The Ministry has intensified its preparations for dealing with heat stress and heat-related illnesses expected to occur during this year's Hajj season, 1440H., which coincides with extreme heat. It has geared up its health facilities in Makkah, Madinah and holy sites to deal with and treat heat stress and sunstroke cases. Likewise, a considerable number of spraying fans have been supplied, as they have proven effective in reducing temperature, and heat exhaustion and sunstroke cases. According to MOH, many training courses and workshop have been held for field staff in such facilities to enable them to handle heat exhaustion and sunstroke cases, and means of transporting them.
Earlier, MOH announced completion of 11 health control centers at air, sea and land access points. The centers operate 24/7. According to MOH, theses centers carryout a number of preventive tasks, and as the first line of defense, they seek to take preventive measures and to apply the international health regulations to various means of transportation, incoming pilgrims and their luggage and imported foodstuffs to protect the Kingdom against infiltration and spread of infections.
It pointed out that these centers have been enhanced with the necessary equipment to assume their role, including manpower to operate 24/7 during Hajj Season, training for manpower participating in Hajj, as well as cutting-edge isolation rooms to segregate suspected cases before taking them to hospitals. MOH has also provided medical supplies (vaccines, preventive drugs etc.), in addition to Hi-Tech ambulances to transport patients to the nearest hospital.
The centers provide the pilgrims with healthcare services as well as health instructions and advises through awareness materials that are updated periodically. The General Authority of Civil Aviation broadcasts these materials on board the planes carrying the pilgrims. Also, the centers, through the Epidemiological Surveillance Program «HESN», provide all health authorities with information about pilgrims' statistics and health status in order to provide integrated and outstanding health services to Allah's guests.
Also, MOH has prepared 6 helicopter landing sites at its hospitals in Makkah and holy sites. The landing sites have been registered with the General Authority of Civil Aviation, three of them at King Abdullah Medical City, Al Noor Specialist Hospital and Hera General Hospital. They are designed for evacuation inside and outside Makkah. The other three landing sites are in East Arafat Hospital, Arafat General Hospital and Mina Emergency Hospital for evacuation of medical cases inside Makkah.
In the same vein, MOH has launched its annual awareness program dubbed "Your Health Consultant in Hajj", which comes in line with the ministry's keenness to maintain the health and safety of pilgrims, citizens and residents and provide them with medical tips. The Assistant Agency for Primary Healthcare, represented by the Medical Consultations General Department, continues implementation of the service via 937-Service Center and MOH's account on Twitter, @saudimoh.
Every day, the program hosts an elite of consultants and specialists for seven days to answer all calls and inquiries of those wishing to perform this year's Hajj. In addition, the callers will be briefed on the health requirements to be met by pilgrims and Umrah performers, as well as health guidelines before, during and after the Hajj.