Health
From The Report: Kuwait 2017
View in Online Reader

Over the last five years Kuwait’s health care industry has gained significant momentum, adequately responding to rapid population growth by simultaneously addressing capacity constraints and improving the quality of health infrastructure. Despite the decline in oil prices and a budget deficit of over KD12bn ($39.7bn), health care spending remains a priority for the government. Although the state has traditionally acted as the main payer in the health care system, covering roughly 86% of expenditures in the country in 2014, government objectives are now aimed at increasing private sector participation to meet the growing demand for health care and reduce the burden on the state budget.

This chapter contains an interview with Dr Ahmed Al Saleh, CEO, Health Assurance Hospitals Company.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Keeping pace: Population growth fuels rapid development of health services
OBG
plus

Over the last five years Kuwait’s health care industry has gained significant momentum, adequately responding to rapid population growth by simultaneously addressing capacity constraints and improving the quality of health infrastructure. Despite the decline in oil prices and a budget deficit of over KD12bn ($39.7bn), health care spending remains a priority for the government. Although the state has traditionally acted as the main payer in the health care system, covering roughly 86% of…

Analysis

Infrastructure boom: Large-scale projects in the development pipeline will cater to growing demand for heath care
OBG
plus

Across the health care sector, infrastructure projects worth more than KD1.5bn ($5bn) are under way in Kuwait. The government is the largest service provider, currently representing around 90% of the market in terms of hospital bed numbers and facilities, and the state is working in accordance with the national plan to adopt the World Health Organisation’s proposal of allocating at least 22 hospital beds for every 10,000 people by 2030, according to the Ministry of Health (MoH). This particular…

Interview

Boosting standards: Dr Ahmed Al Saleh, CEO, Health Assurance Hospitals Company, on the improvements needed to move the sector forward
OBG
plus

Interview: Dr Ahmed Al Saleh What is required in terms of structure and regulation to improve health care in Kuwait? DR AHMED AL SALEH: Today, Kuwait’s health care system is recognised as one of the most developed in the Middle East. Its achievement in terms of health indicators rival average European standards of health, and the government has committed to reforming the health care system several times over the last 20 years. However, these attempts have not achieved their target, mainly due…