Riyadh: Chief Executive Officer of King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre (KFSHRC) Dr. Majid Alfayyadh affirmed that Saudi Arabia's healthcare transformation represents a strategic shift in the philosophy of care, moving the system's focus from treating illness to preserving health through prevention, home care, and digital connectivity that links patients to healthcare providers across all levels of care.
According to Saudi Press Agency, Dr. Alfayyadh made the remarks during his keynote address at the Global Health Exhibition 2025 in Riyadh, emphasizing that digital integration has become a defining feature of the national transformation. He cited the National Virtual Hospital, which connects 130 hospitals and provides more than 400,000 visits annually, as a model for expanding access and continuity of care across the Kingdom.
He noted that sustainable transformation depends on robust infrastructure combining hospitals, technology, and human capital, supported by more than 80,000 hospital beds and healthcare investments exceeding SAR32 billion nationwide, reflecting the Kingdom's commitment to building a modern and resilient health system.
Dr. Alfayyadh stated that investment in human capital remains central to advancing healthcare transformation, with universities and professional councils developing specialized programs designed to prepare future leaders for a value-based health system and ensure the sustainability of progress.
He added that integration across research, clinical care, and local manufacturing is strengthening the Kingdom's health innovation ecosystem, with locally produced CAR-T cell therapies and insulin representing key milestones in advancing medical self-sufficiency and improving patient outcomes.
Highlighting KFSHRC's leadership in innovation, he referred to world-first robotic procedures performed at the hospital, including a robotic heart transplant and neurosurgery that have redefined precision medicine and accelerated patient recovery.
KFSHRC has been ranked first in the Middle East and North Africa and fifteenth globally among the world's top 250 academic medical centers for 2025. It has also been recognized by Brand Finance as the region's most valuable healthcare brand and listed among Newsweek's World's Best Hospitals 2025, Best Smart Hospitals 2026, and Best Specialized Hospitals 2026, reaffirming its leadership in innovation-driven healthcare.