Opening Ceremony of KKESH Consultative Meeting (An Eye on the Future)
H.E. Dr. Tawfiq Bin Fawzan Al Rabiah, Minister of Health, sponsored the opening ceremony of the consultative meeting of King Khalid Eye Specialist Hospital, which coincides with the 35th anniversary of its foundation. The ceremony was held in Crowne Plaza Hotel and Conference Center in Riyadh on Thursday morning, 7 Rabi Al Awal 1440H, corresponding to 15 November 2018
Dr. Tawfiq Bin Fawzan Al Rabiah, Minister of Health, said: "The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and His Highness Crown Prince have paid special attention to the health sector as part of the current developments taking place in the Kingdom in all its vital sectors. This reflects the new vision that considers the needs of these sectors and keeps abreast of their developments to create an environment that provides citizens with the most advanced medical services and healthcare.
Al Rabia noted that the Ministry continues to support the hospital's efforts to extend its services and enhance its national role in developing eye health services and national programs for healthcare and prevention.
He added that the establishment of the National Committee for Retinopathy of Prematurity through KKESH reflects the active role of the hospital in the prevention and early intervention in addition to providing support to the hospital to renovate its infrastructure, attract and maintain distinguished personnel, and expand clinical research and national eye disease surveys in line with the National Transition Program 2020and vision 2030 of the Kingdom.
The Chief Executive Officer of King Khalid Eye Specialist Hospital Dr. Abdul Aziz bin Ibrahim Al-Rajhi presented a speech in which he said: " The hospital was established upon the order of King Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in response to the country's need for a distinguished eye health center which provides the most advanced treatment, trains healthcare staff, conduct and publish researches that monitor the spread of diseases and find out the best treatment methods in the international peer-reviewed journals
He added that the hospital has gone through many challenges which were overcome due to KKESH strong foundations and cooperative staff led by the best medical team in the region. Today, the Kingdom is leading a prosperous growth at all levels under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques H.H crown prince through the Kingdom's vision 2030, which aims to place our country among the most advanced countries worldwide.
Dr. Al-Rajhi announced the establishment of an international advisory board whose mission is to develop international hospital partnerships, attract distinguished professionals and provide consultation in the development of future medical and scientific policies, and establish KKESH group consisting of KKESH graduates and any employee who work for one year or more (physicians, technicians or administratives) to support the hospital in proposing new ideas, providing technical consultation, and attracting distinguished staff as well as holding social meetings to enhance the sense of loyalty to the hospital.
He mentioned that the hospital will conduct a comprehensive survey that will cover the Kingdom to identify the causes of poor vision and the prevalence of eye diseases, and will collect information about the available facilities and medical cadres to develop accurate plans to deal with these diseases and optimize the utilization of available resources.
He pointed out that the health sector is undergoing a great administrative and organizational transformation under the leadership of His Excellency Minister of Health, Dr. Tawfiq Al-Rabiah, who is working in a dynamic approach, based on achievement, measuring impact and recognizing hard workers. He added: "We are working with his support to involve KKESH as a basic role player in the transformation process. The hospital is the home of ophthalmologists in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries. More than 53% of Saudi ophthalmic consultants were graduates of KKESH. After 35 years of achievements, the hospital's Advisory Board determined to involve its graduates and more than 22 of the world's most effective ophthalmologist in shaping the next phase, setting our priorities and strategic goals, and place "An eye on the future".
During the ceremony, Dr. Tawfiq Al-Rabia honored pioneer ophthalmologists among which was Dr. Samer Islam, former General Supervisor of KKESH. The award was received on his behalf by his son Dr. Hussam Islam. Dr. Ehsan Badr was also honored as the first appointed ophthalmologist in the hospital. The award was received by his sister Dr. Maha Badr. Dr. Haider Al-Hajjar was honored as the first Saudi ophthalmologist. The award was received by his son Eng. Ghazi Al-Hajjar. Dr. Faleh Al-Falih was also honored as the first Dean of the College of Medicine in the Kingdom. Then, the first batch of ophthalmologists graduated from the KKESH was also honored.
At the end of the ceremony, H.E. Dr. Tawfiq Bin Fawzan Al Rabiah, Minister of Health, inaugurated the new logo of the hospital. Then, he opened the Al-Kahala exhibition of the Islamic era of Arabic and Islamic manuscripts for ophthalmology which was held in cooperation with Saud Al-Babtain Center for Heritage and Culture.He also opened the medical exhibition.