Olayan Financial Company (OFC), represented by Olayan Saudi Holding Company (OSHCO), and Austria healthcare firm Vamed Group have partnered to open a new rehabilitation and long-term care hospital in Saudi Arabia with 150 bed capacity.

The facility will provide inpatients and out patients state of the art medical and non-medical services to insured patients, government referred patients and cash patients,  the facility is  the first of several planned as part of OSHCO’s strategy to expand its healthcare investment portfolio, will begin operations in Riyadh in the second quarter of 2024 and offer rehabilitation and post-acute long-term care.

The announcement follows the establishment of a medical investment partnership between Olayan Saudi Holding Company and Vamed Group last month. An agreement was signed at Olayan Financing Company premises in Riyadh, in the presence of Dr Nabil AlAmoudi, Chief Executive officer of OFC, Uwaidh Alharthey, CEO of OSHCO, Christian Schuhmacher, Managing Director and Senior Vice President, Middle East and Africa of Vamed, and Michael Ferstl, General Manager of Vamed KSA.

As part of the alliance, OSHCO and Vamed will jointly establish, operate and manage hospitals in the Eastern and Western Regions of Saudi Arabia and various cities in the GCC/Middle East.

Uwaidh Alharthey commented: “We are pleased to announce a new major milestone on our growth journey as we endeavour to open our first rehabilitation and long-term care hospital in Riyadh in partnership with Vamed Group. The healthcare sector in Saudi Arabia and the wider region offers promising opportunities, with demand for quality healthcare increasing significantly, and therefore, it is a key focus area for OSHCO as we continue to fulfil our objectives as part of Olayan Financing Company’s investment strategy.

“We have several hospitals in the pipeline to address this gap and maximize opportunities while also contributing to the objectives of the Health Sector Transformation Program of Saudi Vision 2030 and supporting the Ministry of Health’s Vision 2023 that encourages the private sector to invest, build and take over rehabilitation and post-acute long-term care centres and hospitals in the Kingdom.”

Dr Thair Salim, VP of Health & Personal Care of Olayan Saudi Holding Company, added: “Saudi Arabia’s ongoing efforts to build a comprehensive, effective, and integrated health system has a huge focus on long-term medical care and rehabilitation.

"In alignment with this, our new hospital will leverage OSHCO’s unparalleled local market knowledge and Vamed’s international expertise to provide exceptional patient experiences and high-quality services for people with chronic illnesses or disabilities to help meet their medical and non-medical needs. We are committed to furthering this strategic partnership to transfer knowledge and best global practices to the Kingdom, develop innovative services, and play a leading role in the development of the local and regional healthcare sector.” – TradeArabia News Service