Overview of the Healthcare System in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Saudis receive their healthcare from one of several ways:
1) From a public, Ministry of Health-funded service;
2) From a military hospital, of which there are two branches (the Saudi Arabian National Guard and the Ministry of Defense and Aviation);
3) From a hospital for government employees;
4) From a subspecialized referral hospital;
5) From a Ministry of Education/university teaching hospital;
6) From private, for-profit hospital;
7) From a private hospital for employees of a specific industry.
The breakdown of facilities is as follows:
1) Ministry of Health Facilities
These serve the general public and are located in both the large cities and the small towns throughout Saudi Arabia. The largest are the 1,200-bed King Fahd Medical City and 1,500-bed King Saud Medical City, Riyadh.
2) Military Hospitals
These serve members of the Saudi Arabian armed forces and members of their families. There are two branches of armed forces: The Saudi Arabian National Guard (SANG) and the Ministry of Defence and Aviation (MODA).
A) Saudi Arabian National Guard (SANG)
SANG is the branch of the military that is involved chiefly with internal threats. SANG hospitals provide care to the soldiers of the
Saudi Arabian National Guard and their dependents, and include:
- King Abdulaziz Medical City - Riyadh (1500 beds, formerly the King Fahad National Guard Hospital), this complex includes the King Abdullah Specialized Children’s Hospital (600 beds, plus 60 bed ER and 70 day care and infusion beds);
- King Abdulaziz Medical City - Jeddah (751 beds, formerly the King Khalid National Guard Hospital);
- Imam Abdulrahman Al Faisal Hospital - Dammam (112 beds);
- King Abdulaziz Hospital - Al Ahsa (300 beds);
- Prince Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz Hospital – Medina (320 beds)
B) Saudi Arabian Ministry of Defence and Aviation (MODA)
MODA provides defense against primarily external threats. MODA
includes the Saudi Arabian Army, the Royal Saudi Naval
Forces, the Royal Saudi Air Force, and Royal Saudi Air
Defence. MODA hospitals provide care to
the soldiers of MODA and their dependents, and include:
- Prince Sultan Military Medical City (1,100+ beds); includes the Prince Sultan Cardiac Center, Riyadh
- King Fahad Armed Forces Hospital, Jeddah (530 beds);
- Al-Hada Hospital (469 beds), Taif
- Northern Area Armed Forces Hospital (also known as King Khalid Military City) (307 beds), Hafr al Batin
- King Salman Armed Forces Hospital In the Northwestern Region (formerly North West Armed Forces Hospital), Tabuk (900 beds);
- King Fahd Military Medical Complex, Dhahran (350 beds);
- Armed Forces Hospital at King AbdulAziz Airbase, Al Khobar (300 beds);
- Wadi Al-Dawassir Hospital, Wadi Al-Dawassir (100 beds);
- Sharurah Armed Forces Hospital, Sharurah (146 beds).
3) Ministry of the Interior
This serves members the Ministry of the Interior, including the police and customs officers, and their families. Hospitals include:
- Security Forces Hospital, Riyadh (678 beds)
- Security Forces Hospital, Mecca (200 beds)
4) Referral Hospitals
These provide specialized care, not available in other centers:
5) Ministry of Education/university teaching hospitals
- King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz University Hospital at Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University (300 beds, specializing in women’s health, adolescent health, and child growth/development);
- King Khalid University Hospital (KKUH), Riyadh;
- King Fahd Hospital of the University (KFHU), Al Khobar;
- King Abdul Aziz University (KAU) Hospital, Jeddah
6) Private, For-Profit Facilities for Profit
Some include:
- Saudi German Hospital, Jeddah
- Dr. Erfan & Bagedo Hospital, Jeddah; Kingdom Hospital, Riyadh
- SAAD Medical Centre, Al Khobar
- Soliman Fakeeh Hospital, Jeddah (600 beds, and the largest private hospital in Saudi Arabia)
- Dr Sulaiman Habib Medical Group (hospitals in several cities, including Riyadh and Jeddah)
7) Private Facilities Serving Specific Industries
- Johns Hopkins Aramco Hospital, Dhahran & Al Ahsa (374 beds at Dhahran and 80 beds at Al Ahsa); serve employees/dependents of the oil company Saudi ARAMCO
- Royal Commission Hospitals, serve employees/dependents of the Industrial cities located at: Jubail (215 beds) on the east coast and Yanbu (342 beds) on the west coast
