Oman's health sector is in the midst of a period of transition as a rise in affluence sees fewer cases of traditional ailments such as malaria but a higher incidence of non-communicable "lifestyle" related diseases like diabetes and heart disease. The trend has spurred increased government spending on specialist facilities and is expected to prompt greater private sector involvement in health care over the next decade.
In recent years, Omani health services have scored major victories in the fight against illnesses that were once prevalent in the region. Malaria is now almost unheard of, and of the few current sufferers in Oman, most contracted the disease overseas. There have been no instances of diphtheria reported for a decade, and just three cases of measles were treated in 2009. At the end of July, health officials unveiled another success, announcing that the highly infectious eye infection trachoma had been almost eradicated.
With most traditional diseases now under control, the government is shifting its attention and funding to focus on a new range of ailments: so-called lifestyle illnesses. More than 13% of Omanis now suffer from diabetes, and there has been a spike in the number of locals suffering from various heart ailments. A recent study also showed that at least 23% of Omanis were obese.
The findings of the study suggest that lifestyle changes are having a negative impact on the health of many Omani citizens. However, Hanadi Jamaan Al Rajab, the head of the dietetics section at the Department of Nutrition, Directorate General of Health Affairs, Ministry of Health (MoH), believes this does not tell the whole story.
"Although we have increasing trends in obesity, we also have the other extreme, malnutrition in some of our target groups," Hanadi said in an interview with the Times of Oman in mid-July. "We are at a transitional phase in terms of chronic disease prevalence."
Oman's problems with malnutrition are believed to be linked to children eating too much junk food and snacks. As a result, the MoH has started to increase the number of awareness programmes that promote better eating habits at schools and in the wider community.
The ministry is also ramping up spending on specialist facilities and units to treat non-communicable diseases. On August 10, Dr Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Obaid Al Saidi, the health minister, said his department has some $190m worth of development projects in the works, including a heart disease centre and magnetic resonance imaging unit (MRI) in Salalah. The MoH is also coordinating projects with the private sector to improve cardiology and diabetes services.
Despite the growing commitment by the state to counter lifestyle-related illnesses, official estimates indicate that by 2020 non-communicable diseases will account for 70% of all deaths in Oman, up from just over 50% at present. The need to combat lifestyle illnesses is one of the reasons that Oman's health budget is on the rise, with allocations of $766m this year representing an 8% increase on 2009. To respond to the growing health needs of the country, it is forecast that the budget of the MoH will have to almost double by 2020, which could see the private health sector take on a greater role.
Educational efforts will also play a role in MoH plans going forward, with these likely to focus on convincing locals to adopt healthier habits. "Recent experience has shown that individuals and families will adopt new habits if they learn that those habits can improve their health and living standards," Al Saidi told OBG. "The MoH has focused in its current five-year health development plan and also in the coming one on health promotion activities through community-based health projects aiming to control the risk factors associated with the major non-communicable diseases prevalent in Oman. Over 200 health educators, graduates from a special programme devised for this purpose, are also involved in these activities apart from the mass media."
Changing lifestyles have also prompted the launch of a new Omani-German joint venture, with a newly established firm to build a spinal surgery and rehabilitation centre at Majz Al Soghra in Saham Wilayat. It is hoped that the centre will address sporting, vocational and traffic-accident injuries in the Sultanate, while also positioning it as a destination for medical tourism.
Work on the centre is scheduled to begin before the end of 2010, with an expected completion date of 2013, according to Murtadha Al Jamalani, the founder of the Omani Reinsurance Company and a partner in the project. "There has been good response from the officials in other Gulf countries, who seem keen to cooperate and benefit from its services," Al Jamalani told local media at the end of July.
"The centre will provide employment and training opportunities for Omani doctors and reduce the pressure on the government hospitals. It will also save costs and efforts incurred by the government, citizens and expatriates in the Sultanate," he said.
With its ongoing commitment to providing health services, and the increasing involvement of the private sector, Oman is well placed to treat both existing medical conditions and the growing number of lifestyle illnesses. However, as the government knows only too well, to effectively combat the latter, there will need to be greater focus put on prevention rather than cure.
© Oxford Business Group 2010
