JEDDAH: The Ministry of Health is working with the pubic and private health sectors to formulate a home care strategy, said Princess Adela bint Abdullah during the opening of a home health care medical conference that kicked off at Jeddah Hilton on Tuesday.
According to Princess Adela, the ministry has formed a committee of all private and governmental health organizations and charities to ensure excellent home care is provided in the Kingdom.
"We are cooperating with health organizations to ensure international home health care standards at all hospitals and charity organizations in the Kingdom," said Princess Adela while speaking at the conference, "Humanitarian and Health Partnership -- Culture of Excellence."
"The National Foundation Charity for Home Health Care in the western region of Saudi Arabia has prepared a nursing diploma program. This program will be presented to King Abdulaziz University and the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties to adopt," said Princess Adela.
She added that the General Presidency of Research and Ifta has issued a fatwa allowing the use of charity money to offer home care and buy equipment. It is hoped that the home care program will benefit many families that cannot get treatment because of financial or social reasons.
"This event will bring together private and governmental sectors to discuss the possibility of adopting a home health care strategy in the coming 10 years," said Dr. Mohammed Khoshaim, deputy minister for planning and development at the Ministry of Health.
"Eight percent of operations that are performed in Europe take only one day or sometimes a few hours. In Saudi Arabia, the same operations take two or three days. All countries worldwide have witnessed changes in the health-care industry; they have become smarter in presenting services. We should start to think how to protect patients from getting into hospital a second time," said Khoshaim.
Whenever we succeed in dealing with emergency cases outside hospitals, we will achieve success in home health care, he added.
Dr. Kateb Eid Al-Otaibi, director general of the Armed Forces Hospitals, said that "the one day surgery" is a new strategy that should be implemented in the Kingdom's health sector. "We signed an agreement with a number of health sectors to teach doctors and nurses home health care. Launching such services could reduce health costs to 65 percent," he said.
Dr. Walid Fitaihi, chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of the International Medical Center (IMC), said that home health care has become a necessity in the Kingdom, but will not be successful unless the nursery concept that is present in Saudi society changes.
"Eighty-four percent of home health care involves nursing. Unfortunately, the nursing career is still not liked in Saudi society. Statistics confirm that there is only one nurse among every six girls, when there should be, according to international standards, one nurse per four girls," he said, adding that there is a need to change the way wider society views nursing.
"We need a master plan to be done by the Ministry of Labor, the Ministry of Information and Culture, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education. Their role would be encouraging Saudi women to work in nursing, change the way Saudi society views nursing using the media, adopting a syllabus in schools about nursing in early Islam, and increasing qualifications and standards in health institutions," he said.
"Charity work is also required. We've witnessed examples of international businessmen who donate part or half of their wealth to charity work. In the West, there are no restrictions on charity work. In the Kingdom, we still suffer from the procedures and restrictions that negatively affect charity work," he said.
According to Fitaihi, nurses should be qualified and understand the meaning of home health care.
"Nurses who are working in home health care should distinguish the difference between the word treating and healing. Healing means presenting services with a smile," he said.
© Arab News 2011
