Minister of Health Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabea said his organization has obtained vaccines and drugs at no cost by bartering swine flu vaccine it did not need. He said the Ministry of Health has also secured medicine at competitive prices through direct imports, which has saved a considerable amount of money. Dr. Al-Rabea made the comments Saturday at the Eid reception party held at the Ministry of Health headquarters in Riyadh. He said the organization's strategic plan, which is in its final revision stage, conforms with the plan approved by the Council of Ministers and the National Scheme for Integrated and Comprehensive Medical Care. He said a major element of the 10-year plan is that it maintains justice in providing medical services. The strategy also maintains a balance between the various medical sectors and reduces the prospect of transmission of diseases throughout the Kingdom, he said. The Ministry of Health has made a number of improvements to providing care and efficiency in providing it, Dr. Al-Rabea noted. A unified emergency number has enabled it to deal simultaneously with 3,450 cases of evacuation from remote hospitals to referral hospitals, he said. He said about 4,000 patients have benefited from a program to provide medical care at their homes while the number of one-day surgical operations has reached 21,000. That has saved 42,450 days of admission in seven months, which works out to an additional 200 available beds per year. The numbers of hospitals that conduct one-day operations have increased to 93 percent of the 200-bed facilities and more than 80 percent in those with 100 beds, he added. The Ministry of Health has computerized work in 150 primary health centers throughout the country and introduced the health information system in 28 out of 30 hospitals, Dr. Al-Rabea said. During the Umrah season, the Ministry of Health operated 10 emergency centers in the service of the Umrah pilgrims including five centers inside the Holy Haram, he said.
