Futuristic King Hamad hospital debuts in Bahrain
The King Hamad American Mission Hospital (KHAMH) has been inaugurated in Manama, Bahrain and will benefit from an active role by Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer.
It was unveiled last week by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the crown prince and prime minister, on behalf of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. Prince Salman is the eldest son of King Hamad. The unveiling of the new facility also marks the 120th anniversary of the first modern hospital – the American Mission Hospital (AMH) – not just in Bahrain, but in all of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which opened in 1903.
Sheba Medical Center said it will have an active involvement in this now-futuristic hospital, as it will be the first facility in Bahrain to integrate ARC (Accelerate, Redesign, Collaborate) medical start-up innovations into KHAMH, which will enable doctors to offer the most advanced care in the region.
ARC aims to develop, pilot and roll out game-changing solutions. It prioritizes innovations in digital health as its main change vehicle and fosters an open innovation environment. Its goal is to have a meaningful, measurable impact on healthcare by 2030. To this end, it links leading academic medical centers with innovative start-ups and strategic industry partners to promote accelerated development and implementation through the sharing of data and streamlined
collaborations.
He commended the efforts to broaden accessibility and advancing medical services available to citizens and residents. In turn, this has contributed to improving the efficiency of Bahrain’s healthcare sector, and the kingdom’s wider development goals, the prince said.
“This is a futuristic, smart hospital – technology-enabled to create a holistic healing environment that extends beyond the four walls of the hospital,” said Dr. George Cheriyan, the corporate CEO and chief medical officer. “KHAMH is built on the concept of the future of health with the idea of wellness and preservation of health. The designs incorporate the natural elements of light and greenery that enhance human senses and bring them close to the environment to facilitate healing through compassionate care on the human side and also to give a well-informed
digitized patient experience.”
In March, the hospital will become fully operational. It will highlight 125 acute-care beds, offering primary to tertiary care; with one wing dedicated to women and children, and another one dedicated to the medical and surgical specialties.
“Its state-of-the-art, hybrid, modular operating rooms with intensive care units, day surgical units, a dialysis unit of 20 beds, laboratory and imaging center are equipped to help patients who seek urgent, accident and emergency care,” added Cheriyan.
“Collaboration with Sheba Medical Center makes the hospital an innovation hub, which will bring to Bahrain worldclass medical research and technology to enable young Bahraini entrepreneurs to take advantage of the opportunities in healthcare innovation. KHAMH is more than a hospital,” concluded Cheriyan.