The Cleveland Clinic said it signed an affiliation agreement with Healthcare Development Holding Co., a professional managed healthcare company in Saudi Arabia, to provide medical education and training to healthcare providers in Saudi Arabia.
The 12-hospital system opened an office in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Jan. 22, according to a Cleveland Clinic spokesman. Along with medical education and training programs, the locally staffed office will provide electronic second opinions, consulting, and patient support to Cleveland when requested.
“It is our vision in HDH to be the leading healthcare development company through enhancing both the infrastructure and quality of healthcare services in Saudi Arabia,” said HDH CEO Dr. Wael Kaawach in a news release, “and this affiliation is a big step towards achieving this vision.”
The Cleveland Clinic said in a news release that it has maintained a relationship with Saudi Arabia for more than 40 years. The system has established educational and research initiatives with academic medical centers in Chile, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia and is building a specialty hospital and clinic in the United Arab Emirates as part of a joint venture with a locally owned investment firm.
The spokesman said that the financial terms of the affiliation agreement will not be disclosed.
