Health
From The Report: Bahrain 2016
View in Online Reader

Home to the first modern hospital in the region, Bahrain has one of the oldest health care sectors in the Gulf. Sustained investment in the sector has seen outcomes improve considerably for the majority of the population, with life expectancy rising from 71 in 1983 to 77 in 2013 and infant mortality dropping from 21 per 1000 births in 1985 to five in 2013. The sector continues to see new investment from both public bodies and private investors, with recently opened and prospective new facilities including centers for blood disorders and cardiology. Meanwhile, in order to better balance rising costs in line with deficit reduction goals, the government is considering shifting from a state-sponsored health system to an insurance-based model.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Keeping pace: Changes are afoot as the sector adapts to new conditions
OBG
plus

Home to the first modern hospital in the region, founded by American missionaries in 1902, Bahrain has one of the oldest health care sectors in the Gulf. Over the course of the 20th century, the country developed a comprehensive health care system, substantially modernised with a large injection of funds during the 1970s oil boom. Now the authorities are looking to meet new challenges and introduce greater private sector involvement. By The Numbers In 2014 Bahrain had a population of 1.31m, up…

Analysis

Nurses needed: Training students to enter the medical profession with an eye to raising Bahrainisation rates
OBG
plus

In common with those in many other Gulf countries, the medical system in Bahrain has traditionally relied on foreign personnel to meet a large proportion of its staffing needs. This is partly for historical reasons – the first modern hospitals in the region were set up by American missionaries – and partly due to population size – Bahrain’s population is over 1m, of which nationals account for just under half. Given the challenges of finding specialists, health authorities have traditionally…