Ministry of Health and GE delivering digital solutions to bring transformative change to Kingdom’s healthcare sector

The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health and GE (NYSE: GE) have delivered the first phase of a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) focused on digital transformation in healthcare, signed in May 2017 in the presence of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. In the MOU, the Ministry of Health and GE committed to driving positive change in the Kingdom’s healthcare sector through digital solutions, directly supporting the National Transformation Plan and the aims of Saudi Vision 2030.

The key solution deployed as part of the MOU is the cloud-based Electronic Medical Record (EMR), a digital record of a patient’s entire healthcare journey, which replaces the manual, handwritten paper charts previously used. The solution will be on Predix, GE’s platform for Industrial Internet of Things applications. Predix is built to analyze large amounts of sensitive data, with the goal of realizing improved outcomes even in complex environments like healthcare facilities.

EMR is currently live in three MOH hospitals in the Kingdom: Al Kharj Maternity & Children’s Hospital, Al Bukayriyah General Hospital, and Yanbu General Hospital. With the digital solution, healthcare providers and patients have better access to a continuum of information for diagnosis and treatment, through an easy-to-access profile that records all touch points with different departments and facilities. Benefits include being able to see results over time to track progress of a medical condition; quickly identifying when patients are due for preventative visits or screenings; reducing the number of transcription errors; reducing report turnaround times; and providing a holistic view of patients’ visits, results, and conditions.

Since hospital employees are the key users of EMR, MOH and GE worked closely together to co-create a tailored tool that encourages fast adoption through ease-of-use. While some hospitals have as many as 200 disparate systems, EMR has integrated the clinical, laboratory, nursing, pharmacy, radiology, finance, and pathology departments into a single platform. MOH and GE have established a complete training program for users, including for vendors working within the hospital networks. The system is also flexible, allowing for change and growth as the needs of the facility, patients, and healthcare providers evolve.

H.E. Dr. Tawfiq Al Rabiah, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Health said, “This is a significant step in the transformation of the Kingdom’s healthcare sector in line with the goals of our leadership to enhance patient care and deliver the highest quality of service. The welfare and well-being of our people is a fundamental priority of the leadership, and we see significant opportunity in leveraging digital solutions for boosting healthcare delivery. GE’s partnership with MOH is a pioneering example of how Saudi Arabia is redefining our healthcare landscape through best-in-class solutions.”

John Flannery, Chairman and CEO of GE, said, “EMRS was built to drive quantitative and qualitative improvements to the Kingdom’s healthcare sector through digital transformation.  This new innovative technology will deliver tangible, game-changing results for healthcare providers and patients across the Kingdom.  The more relevant information that healthcare providers have about their patients, the better positioned they are to serve their needs.”

Hisham Al Bahkali, President & CEO, GE Saudi Arabia & Bahrain said, “Saudi Arabia is shaping a new growth narrative led by Vision 2030 that places the welfare of its residents as the top-most priority. The Kingdom’s emphasis on diversification and partnerships offers a significant opportunity for companies like GE to partner in the growth vision of the Kingdom. This partnership is one way we are supporting the digital transformation of the healthcare sector, and implementing our advanced suite of solutions. This will be a game-changer for the healthcare sector and contribute to enhanced patient care.”

GE is proud to have partnered extensively with the Saudi Ministry of Health, supporting their work in improving access and efficiency, and delivering higher quality care through initiatives like the Saudi Breast Cancer Screening Program, the Healthcare Skills & Training Institute, and Ada’a Improvement Program. GE has also introduced its advanced digital capabilities into the Kingdom through several landmark partnerships and initiatives announced over the last year.

GE has over 80 years of partnership in the Kingdom with over 4,000 employees, including Baker Hughes, a GE company. Nearly 50 percent of our talent is employed in highly-skilled engineering and technology roles. GE has built an advanced industrial ecosystem that includes a growing local supply chain, with significant partnerships and investments in support of the Kingdom’s economic diversification goals, including building localized manufacturing competencies.