Assessing Health Care Delivery in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

This paper deals with the some of the important variable factors relating to health care in Saudi Arabia, with special emphasis on primary health. Other aspects considered are the financial influences in medical care, the availability of female Saudi and of expatriate physicians, and the special needs imposed by the annual pilgrimage, all of which influence health care delivery in Saudi Arabia. The bias and limitations which arise from the unqualified application of the physician-population ratio in determining the quality of health care in Saudi Arabia are also described. Recommendations are made for improving this overall ratio as well as better meeting the specific medical needs of the people through expansion of primary health care services.A-RF Al-Swailem, Assessing Health Care Delivery in Saudi Arabia. 1990; 10(1): 63-68The physician's traditional role has been to care for and when possible cure the sick, to stem the progression of disease, to minimize damage, to relieve pain and suffering, and to comfort at all times. These are major aspects for which physicians are trained. There is, however, another increasingly important role for physicians, that of the educator who can facilitate the early recognition and prevention of disease by promoting health-fostering attitudes.As the practice of medicine has become increasingly complex and effective, physicians no longer singlehandedly do everything required to treat their patients, much less take on all aspects of comprehensive care. They rely on a variety of trained personnel-nurses, laboratory technicians, radiographers, physiotherapists, pharmacists, and so forth.This means that in determining the needs for the efficient delivery of health care, two questions must be answered. First, how many of each category of health care personnel does a country need, in the short and long term? And second, what proportions will best meet the social mix and achieve the greatest economic efficiency? The answers depend on a steady flow of information about, and adequate appraisal of, health conditions in the country, the nature and magnitude of illness and their determinants, and the extent to which health requirements are part of overall socioeconomic development.One way to assess health care delivery is through ratios. In Saudi Arabia for the year 1407H (1987G), the physician-population ratio was 1:582; the nurse-population ratio, 1:276; the bed-population ratio, 3.3:1,000; and the primary health care center-population ratio, 1:7774. These are important statistics and indicate that Saudi Arabia has made great strides in the development of its health care delivery system.A physician-population ratio, which is a popular tool for assessing the quality of health care, is not by itself an accurate indicator of the health status of a country's population, although it may roughly reflect the level of development. Underdeveloped nations can have a ratio as low as 1:12,346 (Sri Lanka, 1983), while developed nations can have a ratio of 1:500 (U.S. A., 1982), but the ratios do not a...

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