A new kidney care and treatment clinic was opened earlier this month at the Al Majardah General Hospital providing hundreds of Saudi patients with chronic kidney disease better services and easier access. The new clinic, located in the Asir region, was opened by the General Director of Health Affairs, Dr. Ibrahim bin Suliman Alhifzi, and will support 55 patients living in and around Al Majardah. These patients will benefit from a significant reduction in travel time to the new clinic – they previously had to travel more than 70+ kilometers to undertake dialysis at the Mahayel clinic. People with chronic kidney disease need to dialyze, or clean their blood from toxins, three times a week, so the new clinic means shorter trips and more time to enjoy a good quality of life. The new clinic is part of a Ministry of Health program to deliver international-standard kidney care to Saudi patients in partnership with DaVita, an American company and global specialist in the provision of world-class kidney care and treatment. DaVita Chief Medical Officer in the Kingdom, Dr. Abdulkareem Al Suwaida, said inside the new clinics, patients will be able to access DaVita's renowned education programs. “DaVita is well known around the world for its patient education and kidney disease awareness programs to help people with kidney disease live their best lives. Our dieticians and social workers in these new clinics will work with patients to help them achieve wellness and the best quality of life,” he said. The second phase of the Asir project will see DaVita rollout its services and treatment at Ministry of Health clinics in Mahayel and Abha. When the four clinics are fully-operational, more than 408 Saudi patients in the Asir region will be able to experience the best kidney care and treatment. DaVita has already opened six clinics across the Kingdom in Jeddah, Buraydah, Al Ahsa, Riyadh and Taif- bringing its global expertise for the benefit of Saudis. The Ministry of Health awarded DaVita a contract in 2014 to open and run approximately 75 new centers across the Kingdom by the end of 2018 - treating half of the 10,000 dialysis patients in its care. — SG
