Big opportunities lie ahead in Saudi Arabia's healthcare system as the Saudi Ministry of Health makes remarkable progress in the sector by improving access to and the quality of healthcare, observes Bjorn Englund, DaVita EMEA President. In an interview, he said "we believe the biggest opportunities lie in Saudi Arabia is the transition from fee-for-service dialysis treatment to a more holistic approach that also treats comorbid conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, obesity, and addresses overall diet and nutrition. This allows healthcare providers to deliver an integrated bundle under the one roof, which is better for patients and contributes to lower hospitalization rates." Excerpts from an interview with Englund follow: Most people agree that the costs are out of control. What can be done about that? Ideally, the healthcare system in Saudi Arabia will transition to a value-based model, where a healthcare provider assumes full financial and clinical responsibility for a patient. This means the provider can only be successful if they keep their patients healthier. DaVita is focused on providing a ‘value based' system where the emphasis is placed on prevention, education and wellness. It's also a system where physician compensation aligns with keeping patients out of hospital, which lowers consumer healthcare spend. What do you think works best in the current system? What's worst? The Ministry of Health's decision to collaborate with private healthcare providers has allowed companies like DaVita to treat thousands of kidney disease patients under the Ministry's care. This collaboration has given us the opportunity to improve the quality of life for patients in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, achieve differentiated clinical outcomes and to build a long-term relationship with the country's healthcare community. What ideal role should the government play in providing universal health care to both citizens and expats? What role should the private sector play best? The Ministry of Health has laid out a strong platform for success with its Vision 2030 plan, and a foundation needed to enact change for the nation's health. Where the private sector can really assist is in the development and implementation of integrated kidney care and integrated primary-care ‘value-based' systems that could hold the key to the nation's long-term prosperity when it comes to healthcare. Are you in favor of universal health care coverage? What services should be included in universal health coverage? How can we measure universal health coverage? Universal health coverage can be described as a system where financial risk protection, access to quality essential health-care services and access to safe, effective, quality and affordable essential medicines and vaccines are available for all. It can be monitored through different indexes in the country. Regardless of the system that each country has invoked, the goal is to produce a system that will provide the highest quality of healthcare to the greatest number of people. How would DaVita see its role in the coming 10 years in Saudi Arabia? Long term, when a healthcare system shifts from fee-for-service to a holistic integrated care model, ultimately you have a value-based healthcare system where the dollars and time are spent on prevention and wellness. The result is reduced emergency room visits, reduced hospital admissions and a lowered length of stay for those that are admitted. DaVita has more than 30 years of experience managing large patient populations and we are uniquely positioned to help this shift from volume to a value-based system. This would bring significant economic value to the Kingdom. Not only can we provide services, but also the consulting services to help create the right pilot, so we can move the needle clinically and ensure cost efficiencies. This is the exciting direction we hope to take with the Ministry of Health, which would greatly improve the quality of life for all Saudis. — SG
