JEDDAH, Jan 13(Arab News): A number of recommendations were issued at the conclusion of a two-day conference on home health care at Jeddah Hilton on Wednesday.
The conference, titled “Humanitarian and Health Partnership: Culture of Excellence,” urged all hospitals to operate affiliated home care centers that meet international quality standards.
One of the key recommendations was a call by Dr. Walid Fitaihi, CEO of the International Medical Center, for the formulation of a comprehensive strategic plan for home health care in the Kingdom with input from the Ministry of Civil Services, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Higher Education and the Ministry of Social Affairs.
There was also a call for payment of a special allowance to home care staff to encourage them. It was also suggested that all home care personnel (nurses, technicians and workers) should at least have a bachelor’s degree and should get further training on health care concepts, principles and skills.
The conference also called for urging the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties to consider establishing a higher diploma in the field for nurses, and a fellowship in the field for physicians.
One of the major topics discussed at the event was the role of the media in raising awareness, knowledge and understanding of home health care in the Kingdom.
Other speakers at the event were Dr. Hamoud Abu Talib, pediatrician in Jazan; and Khaled Almaeena, editor in chief of Arab News.
“The media still don’t have qualified journalists to write about scientific issues. The available health information carried in the media are mostly unreal or sometimes misunderstood by reporters,” said Abu Talib.
Almaeena and Fitaihi called for the necessity of establishing media offices at all health organizations that could provide correct information to media outlets.
Fitaihi also called for a change in the way the media operate to increase the public’s awareness of health and social issues.
“Statistics confirm that a scene in a TV serial or episode can influence audiences a 100 times more than lectures. I am asking the minister of culture and information to allocate a special budget for serials talking about issues affecting our society. For example, we want serials that encourage girls to work as nurses. We also want to tell people about success stories and give them models and examples. When they see such things, they will move forward and start doing things to benefit society,” said Fitaihi.