RIYADH – Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman issued a royal order on Tuesday to transform the General Organization of King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center (KFSH & RC) into an independent, non-profit, government-owned organization, named King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center.

The move comes as a step to pave the way for launching a comprehensive transformation program to make it one of the best health centers in the world.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City and Chairman of the Board of Directors of KFSH & RC, Fahd Al-Rasheed, said that the transformation would have an impact on expanding its research, opening branches and providing its services to more people.

He pointed out that the hospital is one of the distinguished health centers in the region, adding that this transformation aims to develop the hospital's services, capacity and research production sustainably to become one of the best in the world.

The hospital's board of directors will supervise achieving the goals of the extensive transformation program, adopting a continuous development approach, which will be reflected on the improvement of the capacity and capabilities of the hospital.

For his part, the Executive General Supervisor of the KFSH & RC, Dr. Majid Al Fayyadh, said that KFSH&RC will be required to undertake huge efforts to improve efficiency and productivity. "The organization has already started taking important decisions regarding the new capacity, associated responsibilities, improving quality, enhancing patient experience, operating effectively, and implementing other thirteen parallel tracks to ensure the success of this transformation."

He explained that all hospital services will remain available during the transformation journey while the staff will lead the transformation into a non-profit entity.

It is noteworthy that KFSH & RC has performed hundreds of organ transplants, including the heart - KFSH&RC is one of the top 10 percent of the global centers performing heart transplantations, liver, lung, pancreas and kidney.

The hospital is the first center outside of the United States to be accredited by the Society of Pediatric Oncology, which is one of the most prominent medical institutions in this field worldwide.

The hospital achieved 60% of the total liver transplants performed in Saudi Arabia. In each branch in Riyadh, Jeddah, and Madinah, the hospital has more than 2,500 beds. In research participation, the Research Center has published more than 500 research papers in many international medical journals. – SPA