Amman, June 18 (Petra) — Jordan is setting in motion multiple strategies to address the ramifications of overcrowding and its subsequent costs on its health sector, using tech-infused scientific solutions to boost the efficiency of the healthcare system, according to Minister of Health Firas Hawari. Speaking at a seminar organized by the Jordan News Agency (Petra) last Thursday, the minister highlighted a number of measures to resolve the issue, including building new hospitals, building a virtual hospital and leveraging technology to manage pharmaceutical warehouses, in addition to challenges undermining the sector, including the increasing number of refugees hosted in the Kingdom and the dwindling international support for countries hosting Syrian refugees. Hawari explained that Jordan, over the past century, has received waves of refugees from different countries, the latest of which was a wave of Syrian refugees who are estimated to be 1.3 million in number, indicating that of those 10 percent of Syrian refugees are living in camps, while 90 percent are living in governorates across the Kingdom. Coupled with the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukrainian crisis, which have burdened the national economy, the waves of refugees have impacted bed capacity, bringing down the number of available beds in the Jordanian health sector from 1.8 beds per thousand people to 1.42 beds per thousand people. The World Health Organization does not recommend that the number of beds be less than one bed per 1,000 citizens, according to the classification of low-income countries, while for middle-income countries such as Jordan, the criterion is 3.9 beds per thousand people. Nonetheless, the ministry has remained unwavering in providing basic health services to Syrian refugees on an equal basis with Jordanians, especially medical services that are subsidized by 85 percent to non-Jordanians, who are not covered by health insurance, the minister underscored. In this regard, the minister warned of the diminishing financial support of the international community for countries hosting Syrian refugees, negatively impacting the sustainability and resilience of the national health sector. He stressed the importance of the financial support provided to Jordan, one of the largest host countries for Syrian refugees, noting that he spoke with the World Health Organization’s President and Regional Director during a recent visit to Geneva about the need for the organization and donors to continue supporting refugees in Jordan as well as the Jordanian health sector. Highlighting achievements and measures, Hawari stated that the ministry is forging ahead with implementing royal directives to develop and improve the healthcare system, by providing decent health services for patients, building new hospitals, introducing technology to healthcare, automating electronic files in all hospitals, upgrading primary health services provided in health centers, improving the efficiency of the sector through an electronic system for supply chains and medications and following a participatory approach with the Jordanian Royal Medical Services, universities, the private sector and civil society institutions. On hospital buildings, the minister indicated that in addition to establishing about six new hospitals in different governorates, which, he noted, is costly, the ministry is looking into alternative plans to deal with overcrowding, such as improving primary health care provided in health centers, using the family medicine approach.
Source: Jordan News Agency