Regional profile – Bahrain
Ensuring everyone’s right to healthcare
Bahrain has a comprehensive network of clinics and hospitals across
the island kingdom ensuring that nationals and expats have access to
healthcare. Middle East Health reports.
All residents in the country
must enjoy the right to
access comprehensive
healthcare.” This is the
stated policy of the
Kingdom of Bahrain
Ministry of Health (MoH).
The MoH says this implies
“a determination to provide
integrated preventive and
curative health services
through a network of
primary, secondary and
tertiary healthcare facilities.
The technical and financial
responsibility for providing
this care lies mainly with
the Ministry of Health with
co-ordination of other
ministries, the private sector
and the community.”
The Kingdom of Bahrain
consists of a group of 33
islands, situated in the
Arabian Gulf, off the east
coast of Saudi Arabia. Its
name is derived from two
Arabic words "thnain Bahr"
meaning "two seas" and
refers to the phenomenon
of sweet water springs under
the sea which mingle with
the salty water.
This phenomenon is
believed to be responsible
for the unusual luster of
Bahrain's natural pearls, the
country's major economy
before the advent of oil. The
land had a remarkable
number of natural springs,
which irrigated the fertile
north and western belts for
centuries.
There are numerous other
tiny islands, but they are
mainly uninhabited.
The island kingdom has a
fascinating history dating
back thousands of years.
According to Bahrain
Tourism recent finds show
evidence that “Bahrain was
indeed the site of the lost civilisation of Dilmun
dating from the third
millennium BC, often
referred to as the fabled
Garden of Eden and described as ‘paradise’ in the
ancient Epic of Gilgamesh”.
Bahrain's population of
around 690,000 is centred
in the capital city of
Manama and is a mix of
Arab people and a significant
percentage of expatriates
from around the world.
Heading up the Ministry
of Health is a woman, Her
Excellency Dr Nada Abbas
Haffadah.
Bahrain’s primary healthcare
network includes 19
health centres and two
clinics which act as the
entry points for citizens to
high quality healthcare services
on the island.
The secondary and
tertiary care is provided by
the Salmaniya Medical
Complex, a government-run
complex consisting of five
maternity hospitals, a
psychiatric hospital and a
geriatric hospital. The total
number of beds available in
these hospitals is approximately
1,354 (Health
Statistics, 1999).
Other health facilities
include the College of
Health Sciences which was
established in 1976. The
college provides educational
programmes for nursing and
allied health professionals.
The private Medical
University of Bahrain,
which is linked to the Royal
College of Surgeons in
Ireland, opened last year
and accepted its first intake
of students from the region.
The MoH does allow
Limited Private Practice
(LPP) at the Salmaniya
Medical Complex. Multispecialty
medical clinics
provide private services for
nationals and expatriates in
areas such as oncology,
cardiology, rheumatology,
orthopaedics, dermatology, obs-gyn, ENT and gastroenterology.
The Government has
implemented an electronic
services initiative using
latest information technology
– called HealthIT.
The Health Information
Directorate responsible for
the initiative says: “The
HealthIT programme plays a
major role in enabling the
business and management
of healthcare initiatives to
be achieved. The foundation
of re-engineering and
modernisation is the implementation
of an evidencebased
management that
requires a total restructuring
and redevelopment of its
information and automation
strategies and systems.”
Core areas where the
system is intended for use
include: Patient
Management, Electronic
Patient Records, Patient Appointment System; Orders
and Results Communication,
Pharmacy System, Radiology
Management, Laboratory
Management, Primary
Healthcare, Accident &
Emergency, Theatre,
Nutrition, Critical Care.
Private hospitals
Private hospitals in Bahrian
include the American
Mission Hospital, the oldest
hospital in the region, the
International Hospital of
Bahrain, Ibn Nafees Hospital,
Bahrain Specialist Hospital,
Al Noor Specialist Hospital
and a number of clinics,
dentals surgeries and plastic
surgeries.
American Mission Hospital
Middle East Health spoke to
Dr Paul Armerding, chief
medical officer and chief
executive officer at the
American Mission Hospital.
MEH: You mentioned AMH was one of the oldest
hospitals in the region. Can
you tell me a bit about the
history of the hospital?
PA: American Mission
Hospital (AMH) originated
as the Mason Memorial
Hospital, built and occupied
in 1902 and formally dedicated
on 26 January 1903.
As such, it was the first
modern hospital in the
Arabian Gulf region.
Not only did the people of
Bahrain seek out the services
of Mason Memorial
Hospital, but others also
came from Qatar, Al-Hasa,
Nejd, and southern Iran.
This, in turn, led to a
pattern of visits to neighbouring countries
throughout the first half of
the 20th century. The
missionaries travelled by
boat from Manama to Qatif,
Darin and Uqair on the
Saudi Coast.
From Uqair, it was a daylong
trip on donkey back to
the oasis of Hofuf. After a
rest in Hofuf, it was five to
seven days by camel to
Riyadh, the most frequent
inland destination. On
occasion, trips were
extended as far north as Hail
and as far west as Taif in
Saudi Arabia.
Over the years the work in
Bahrain expanded and
doctors and nurses were
recruited from the West and
India. Many Bahrainis
joined the hospital staff and
were trained in medical
disciplines.
By the late 1950’s, the
Mason Memorial Hospital
had completed its useful
life. Funds were raised
locally and The American
Mission Hospital (AMF) was
built and opened by the late
Amir, Shaikh Isa Bin Salman
Al-Khalifa in 1962.
In 2000 a second hospital,
the Saar Medical and Dental
Center was opened on the
west coast to serve the many
expats living there.
MEH: Can you tell me a
bit about AMH’s current role
in Bahrain and the Gulf?
PA: Our current role is
essentially confined to
Bahrain. We focus on
primary care (general practice
including urgent care,
internal medicine, pediatrics,
obstetrics & gynecology,
dermatology and
general dentistry) and also
offer limited secondary care
(general surgery, orthopedics, ENT, ophthalmology,
anaesthesiology, dental
implants and orthodontics).
We expend a great deal of
energy educating the
community about common
health problems like
diabetes, high blood pressure,
overweight and obesity,
blood lipid disorders, and
chronic respiratory diseases.
We offer package plans at
reduced prices in order to
give patients affordable,
comprehensive care for
these problems at best-practice
standards.
We also provide occupational
medical services for
several employee groups.
MEH: What is the situation
with health insurance
in the kingdom – are both
nationals and expats
covered by the state?
PA: For many years,
healthcare was offered free
to both citizens and expatriate
residents of Bahrain
by the Ministry of Health
(MoH).
In recent years, expatriates
have had to pay for elective MoH medical services, but at
rates that are heavily
subsidised. Legislation is
under development that will
make it mandatory for
employers to provide
medical insurance for expatriate
workers and their
authorised dependants. In
the meantime, the private
health insurance market is
growing and maturing.
Approximately 20% of
persons using our facilities are either insured or covered
directly by their employers.
MEH: Do many residents
(expats and nationals) still
travel abroad to seek treatment?
For what sort of
ailments?
PA: I cannot give you
numbers here. It is well
known that many people
do continue to seek care
abroad and for a variety of
reasons. When I see the
results that some experience,
I cannot understand
why they went elsewhere
when very competent practitioners
are available in
Bahrain. There seems to be
a perception that I call “the
50 kilometre principle” – if
the doctor is within 50
kilometres of me, I probably
know him or his
family, and he’s just some
ordinary dude and I’ll
never let him operate on
me; if he’s more that 50
kilometres away, I don’t
know him and that creates
the necessary mystique for
me to trust him with my
body.|
MEH: What are the main
challenges in healthcare in
Bahrain? What is being done to correct the situation?
PA: The crying need in
Bahrain is for lifestyle
changes that will combat
the growing problems of
diabetes, high blood pressure,
obesity and heart
disease.
People eat too much, their
diets are too rich, and they
don’t get sufficient exercise.
There is a lot of ignorance
about these matters and
preventative care.
To address this problem
we conduct health
screening and education programmes approximately
two or three times each
month at social centres,
clubs, schools, offices, work
camps and factories. We
publish an educational,
bilingual magazine three
times each year.
