MP calls for emergency units across governorates

TDT | Manama

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Bahrain should move to build fully integrated emergency departments across its governorates as housing growth and fast-rising population put more strain on the health system, MP Jalal Kadhem said.

Addressing Parliament yesterday, he said the spread of new residential areas and the rise in demand for care now called for a wider health network that could give people quicker access to treatment near where they live.

Jalal Kadhem said the Ministry of Health’s efforts were valued, but argued that the next stage required a clear shift in how health services were shared across the country. New housing cities, he said, had made it harder to rely mainly on central hospitals.

He said Salmaniya Medical Complex could no longer carry so much of the emergency and treatment load on its own, with the number of citizens and residents nearing 1.6 million.

The strain, he said, had grown heavier on medical staff and health services, especially with the rise of chronic illness needing ongoing and urgent care.

He drew attention to the Northern Governorate, saying that although it has the highest population density, it still lacks a fully integrated medical centre on a level with the main hospitals.

Current care there, he said, remained limited.