Foreign company to manage kidney centers project in Saudi Arabia

The Ministry of Health has announced that SR1.9 billion will be allocated for a five-year project to provide healthcare services for kidney patients.

The project will be assigned soon to a foreign operating company.

Dr. Aqeel Jamaan Al-Ghamdi, deputy minister of health for therapeutic medicine and hospitals and supervisor of the National Program for Dialysis, told Saudi Gazette that major global companies specialized in running dialysis centers were invited to bid for the project.

He said: “The company will run the ministry’s existing high level dialysis centers and build new ones to accommodate kidney failure and dialysis patients.

“This will make a great difference in shifting the quality of services provided by the government to kidney failure and dialysis patients to a higher level.

“The winning company will run its activities according to the specifications and standards set by the ministry.

“The company will oversee the total operations of the ministry’s dialysis centers and the new one that will built, provide them with the needed equipment and maintenance and staff them with experienced professionals to ensure quality services.”

Al-Ghamdi said the ministry has set up a central supervisory board with subcommittees in the region to supervise the project centrally and locally to ensure the project performs according to a high standard.

“It is hoped this new move will enhance the efficient performance of the ministry’s 142 dialysis centers as well as the new centers and services that will be offered to around 10,000 patients all over the Kingdom,” he said.

This artricle was first published in the Saudi Gazette.