In a first, Bahraini patients set to receive health cards

The Health Ministry has announced that health cards will be distributed to Bahraini patients in its efforts to boost public health care. The move is part of ‘Choose Your Doctor ’ i n i t i a t i v e launched by the Health Ministry. The ministry has said that it would distribute more than 150,000 cards through the registered health centres.

The ‘Choose Your Doctor’ initiative allows citizens to select a family physician. Once chosen, the selected general practitioner would be available to keep a record of the patient’s medical history and will continue to treat him/her in case of any follow up appointments.

The doctor is expected to be able give a more personalised treatment and keep a closer eye on the patient which may not have been possible with the old system, where doctors are randomly assigned. Ahmed Ali Kanoo Health Centre, Bilad Al Qadeem Health Centre, National Bank of Bahrain Health Centre in Arad, Isa Town Health Centre, and Kuwait Health Centre are some of the health centres, where ‘Choose Your Doctor’ initiative is available at.  The first phase of the initiative was implemented at A’ali Health Centre in January. It was then rolled out to other health centres following the success.

Citizens have been given the liberty to choose the doctor that they prefer through the Ministry of Health website. If no doctor was selected by the citizens, the doctors would be assigned randomly. The “Choose Your Doctor” project is in line with the National Health Plan 2016-2025 and in line with the implementation of Bahrain Economic Vision 2030.

This is apart from the ‘Online Appointment’ initiative, which was launched and expanded by the ministry in collaboration with IGA in recent years. The online appointment initiative allows citizens and residents to book appointment at health centres.

“This eHealth service comes as part of the scope of the National Health Information Programme (I-SEHA), which is provided by the Ministry of Health for the citizens and residents. “It allows them to book their medical appointments online with the General Clinics at the Health Centres. “This service will also allow the users to reschedule or cancel the upcoming appointments as well as to view the pending and the past medical appointments in all Ministry of Health institutions,” IGA had stated about the initiative