In his opening remarks the premier urged other corporate to follow the example of the Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait, which was the main contributor to the Hidd Health Centre.
His Royal Highness the Prime Minister added that projects taken up by the private sector were better managed than in the government sector. The premier called for the setting up of more health centres to serve the health care needs of all citizens.
The Prime Minister instructed the Acting Minister for Health Dr Fatima Al Balushi to help in the speedy completion of the Halat Al Bu Maher Health Centre, close to Arad.
The roads of Muharraq need to be named after reputed personalities, said His Royal Highness the Prime Minister. He asked the Municipal Council of Muharraq to ensure that the road numbers and some of the names that had nothing to do with any prominent personality to be replaced. Members of the council responded to this suggestion and informed the PM that the council was already en route to renaming the street names after men who in the past have served the Muharraq community.
Dr Mariam Al Jalahamma, Director of Public Health, later told the Bahrain News Agency that the new health centre at Hidd was the fifth in the country. The new health centre, she said, had facilities for total dental care – including root canal – for all Muharraq, in addition to paediatric dental care.
“The Hidd medical centre also had new equipment which allows a peep into the retina of patients,” said the doctor. The new machine made it possible for a consultant in Salmaniya Medical Complex to check the patient through an eye while being examined at Hidd and advice treatment.
“School children in Muharraq can now be fully served by the Hidd unit,” she added. This unit will have speech therapists, psychiatrists and psychologists for children. In addition the medical checks for school children up to higher grades can also be performed here, she added.
“The new centre has nine beds and can also double as an emergency medical aid centre,” said Dr Jalahamma. “This is the second to have training facilities for family health, the first being Naim,” she added.
“The overall cost of the project is BD4.5 million and the cost of equipment alone was BD1 million,” the doctor added. “The 100 staff at Hidd Medical Centre is a gift from the Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait,” she said. “The government would spend BD2 million per year in running the centre,” said the doctor. All the equipment, she said, are digital and state-of-the-art.
Hidd was served by the Arad Health Centre and the new health centre would thus reduce the burden on Arad.