RIYADH, Nov 28 (KUNA) -- Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz has inaugurated on Saturday King Abdullah Medical City in Makkah and Mina Al-Wadi Hospital.
The two key healthcare facilities will serve the residents of the holy city of Makkah and Muslims performing Hajj (pilgrimage) and umrah (minor pilgrimage) all along the year.
"The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia spares no efforts in providing the best possible medical service to the citizens, foreign residents and pilgrims," King Abdullah wrote in the official register of the medical city.
"The Saudi authorities give top priority to the constant development and modernization of the healthcare sector within the framework of a visionary integrated approach," the monarch affirmed.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Dr. Abdallah Al-Rabee'a said the health situation of the pilgrims this year is satisfactory.
"Despite the challenges posed by the Influenza A (H1N1) pandemic, the health authorities, backed by King Abdullah, managed, thank God, to safeguard the safety of the pilgrims and control the outbreak of the fatal disease," the minister said in the inauguration ceremony.
"This royal patronage embodies the keenness of the leadership on providing the best quality of healthcare for citizens, residents and pilgrims," he affirmed "King Abdullah's care for the healthcare sector is evident in three aspects, namely the constant follow-up of the safety of citizens and residents, the endorsement of the medical cadre for all medical personnel at government hospitals and the support for the integrated healthcare strategy," Al-Rabee'a affirmed.
King Abdullah Medical City is the kingdom's third such key project after King Fahad Medical City in Riyadh and King Fahad Specialized Hospital in the northeastern city of Ad-Dammam.
With a total area of 800,000 square meters, the city is part of the national project for integrated and comprehensive healthcare.
Its total bed capacity amounts to 1,500 beds, 500 of them for specialized hospital.
The five-storey facility has all medical specializations including the rare ones such as radiology and digital radiography.
It is equipped with the latest medical equipment in line with the world's most modern standards.
The maternity and pediatrics wards of the hospital have 500 beds. The hospital has rooms for additional bed capacity when other specializations are added in the future.
With a total area of 3,400 sq meters, the three-storey Mina Al-Wadi Hospital has 200 beds for various specializations. (end) od.gb KUNA 282130 Nov 09NNNN