The health care industry in Saudi Arabia is growing rapidly and will continue to provide excellent and challenging opportunities for providers.

The Ministry of Health is the major client with 63% of hospital beds, followed by the private sector with 13%, the Ministry of Defense and Aviation with 8%, the Ministry of Higher Education with 7%, the National Guard with 3%, and the General Organization for Social Insurance, the Royal Commission and the Ministry of Interior with 2% each.

The government of Saudi Arabia continues to provide massive support to existing as well as new projects in order to see that health services are accessible to all people at all levels of care - primary, secondary, and tertiary.

Some of these hospitals are world famous for referrals, teaching and research, e.g., King Khalid Eye Specialist Hospital, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Ministry of Defense and Aviation Hospitals, National Guard Hospitals, and Security Forces Hospitals.

Ministry of health

  The principal objective of the Ministry of Health (MOH) is to provide primary health care to all Saudi Citizens. This is accomplished through hospitals and clinics established throughout the Kingdom. Standard design hospitals of 150, 250, and 350 beds are located in population centers, based on the number of people served, supplemented by 20/50-bed clinics in towns and villages. Special mobile clinics service rural areas and are used to provide additional support to the cities of Mecca and Medina during the Haj period.

King Khalid eye specialist hospital

Located in Riyadh, this 263-bed hospital is a teaching institution and referral center operated by the MOH for the care and treatment of eye disorders throughout the Kingdom and other Middle Eastern countries. The hospital is equipped with the most advanced technology available and employs approximately 40% Western staff. The facility operates according to the U.S. Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organization (JCAHO) standards and has Western accreditation as a teaching institution.

Ministry of defense and aviation

  The Ministry of Defense and Aviation (MODA) provides health care for military personnel (Army, Navy and Air Force), their dependents, MODA civilian employees and their dependents, at military bases and headquarters facilities throughout the Kingdom.

Military hospitals are usually around 350 beds and are mainly primary care facilities.

Military headquarters facilities are located in Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dhahran/Dammam. These are tertiary care and referral hospitals of 600-650 beds. MODA operates a medical evacuation service with an assigned fleet of executive jet and helicopter aircraft, with flight physicians, nurses, and paramedics to transport patients from the primary care facilities to the tertiary care hospitals.