Khaberni - Starting from Sunday, Al-Bashir Hospitals will implement a new mechanism for rearranging appointments for morning outpatient clinics, which contributes to improving the patient's journey within the hospital and distributing the number of visitors across different work shifts, as part of a plan implemented by the Ministry of Health to improve the quality of healthcare services, according to the Ministry’s spokesperson, Saad Al-Amour.
Al-Amour said on Friday to Al-Mamlaka TV that the new mechanism came under direct guidance from the Minister of Health, Ibrahim Al-Badour, following field visits conducted by specialized teams from the Ministry to explore the reality of healthcare services. He mentioned that the directive was given to prepare a plan aiming to improve the patient's journey and distribute visitors over different working hours.
He explained that patient registration would now start from 7 AM instead of 8 AM, allowing visitors to complete registration procedures early, with priority given to the elderly and patients under security detention.
He added that the period from 8 AM to 10 AM will be allocated for new patients visiting the clinics for the first time, while the period from 10 AM until 12 noon will be reserved for patients returning for treatment follow-up and treatment plans.
He confirmed that all patient categories would receive their appointments without exception, although the ministry pays special attention to patients with heart issues, cancer and suspected cancer cases, evaluating these cases on the same day through the specialized clinics.
Al-Amour mentioned that the laboratories and radiology departments would also start operating from 7 AM as part of flexible work schedules, in line with the new mechanism.
He explained that distributing patients into two time periods, from 8 to 10 AM and from 10 AM until 12 noon, aims to reduce the congestion that used to arise from all visitors attending at the same time.
"The Ministry continuously relies on feedback from hospitals and visitors,” according to Al-Amour, who noted that the past period witnessed the launch of initiatives to address congestion, including extending working hours at health centers surrounding Al-Bashir Hospital, and applying a similar experiment in the Zarqa governorate involving 5 health centers surrounding Prince Faisal Hospital and Zarqa Government Hospital.
He pointed out that the appointment organization mechanism had been previously applied at Prince Hamzah Hospital while considering the specificity of each hospital, and Al-Bashir Hospitals will start implementing it from Sunday, with plans to later generalize it to other hospitals and governorates.
Al-Amour confirmed that those visiting the clinics next week have been notified of their new appointments via short text messages, detailing their consultation times, and Al-Bashir Hospitals have dedicated a hotline to respond to inquiries related to appointments and text messages.
Al-Amour indicated that this mechanism would help alleviate the congestion and overcrowding experienced by the clinics, explaining that Al-Bashir Hospitals receive about 6500 visitors daily and include nearly 140 clinic rooms for examining patients and providing treatment according to approved medical protocols.
