THE RED SEA TURTLE BAY HOSPITAL IS THE FIRST OF ITS KIND IN THE AREA. SAUDI PROJECTS SPOKE TO SARA RAFIQUE, SENIOR DIRECTOR OF HEALTHCARE AT RED SEA GLOBAL (RSG) TO FIND OUT MORE.
Saudi Projects speaks with Sara Rafique, Senior Director of Healthcare at Red Sea Global to find out more about the progress at its Turtle Bay Hospital. The hospital, located in The Red Sea’s Turtle Bay area, will provide world-class healthcare to the community of people living in, working at, and visiting the 1.5million m² waterfront site.
Saudi Projects: Can you provide an overview of the project timeline and key milestones for the construction of Turtle Bay Hospital?
Sara Rafique: Turtle Bay Hospital, located at The Red Sea destination has achieved a few important milestones this year. The construction contract was awarded to Abdullah Saed Alsayed Partners in March, and excavation has started on site with the targeted completion date set for December 2025. In parallel, the Medical Equipment contract was awarded to Alf Healthcare in April, and more recently the Hospital architectural drawings received official approval from the Ministry of Health, which is a crucial step towards obtaining the Operating license once construction is complete.
Saudi Projects: What is the planned capacity of the hospital in terms of bed count, and what range of medical services will it offer?
Sara Rafique: The total bed count for Turtle Bay Hospital is 80. Turtle Bay Hospital will offer Primary and Secondary Care, including an Emergency Department, Hyperbaric Therapy, Internal Medicine, Cardiology, General Surgery, Dermatology, Ophthalmology, Orthopedics, Sports Medicine & Traumatology, Otolaryngology (ENT), Urology, Women’s Health, Obstetrics and Pediatrics, Dental Health, Radiology, Laboratory and Clinical Pathology, Prevention and Wellness.
“The first state of the art facility in the Red Sea region”
Saudi Projects: Will the hospital focus on any specific medical specialties or services that are unique compared to other hospitals in the region?
Sara Rafique: Turtle Bay Hospital will ensure that the core healthcare needs on a primary and secondary care level, including emergency care, of the patient population within The Red Sea; visitors, staff and neighboring communities, are covered efficiently. The hospital, although categorized as a general hospital, will be the first state of the art facility in the Red Sea region, offering a patient centered model of care, compared to neighboring healthcare facilities. It is expected that the number of complex cases requiring tertiary care will be very low, therefore the medical services will be limited to level 3 / 4 and any patients requiring more specialized care will be referred to a tertiary care hospital with which we have an existing service level agreement with.
Saudi Projects: What state-of-the-art technologies and equipment are being incorporated into the hospital’s design and operations?
Sara Rafique: The Medical Equipment for Turtle Bay Hospital has been meticulously planned and tailored with a team of Biomedical engineers and clinical experts to ensure we have the latest and greatest technology to meet the highest standards of patient safety and ensure successful integration with Health Information Systems. The Hospital will have a multi-hyperbaric chamber to treat barotrauma injuries related to diving and wound care. Our long-term goal is to achieve HIMSS Level 7 digital maturity accreditation; therefore, we have made every effort to implement closed loop systems throughout various medical services to enhance patient safety and care.
Saudi Projects: How are you planning to recruit and train the medical and administrative staff for the hospital?
Sara Rafique: All medical and administrative staff for Turtle Bay Hospital will be hired though our healthcare Operator StewardAlf. StewardAlf is a joint venture between Steward Healthcare International – the largest Healthcare Operator and ACO in the US and Saudi based construction and engineering company, Al Fanar.
Detailed job descriptions will be created for each role and a shortlist of candidates built based on their qualifications, experience, and skills. Once the final candidates are selected, we will take them through our comprehensive training program, tailored specifically to their area of responsibility.
This program covers various aspects of clinical and operational responsibility, including clinical and administrative policies and procedures, adherence to our quality and risk management guidelines, patient management, patient experience, roles and responsibilities, competency in managing equipment, and appropriate documentation including our EHR and overall ICT systems.
“Our healthcare facilities will adhere to strict regulatory standards, guidelines, and international clinical and operational benchmarks to ensure patient safety”
Saudi Projects: What measures are being implemented to ensure high standards of patient care and safety?
Sara Rafique: Turtle Bay Hospital will implement measures such as staff training and education. All employees will undergo extensive training to ensure they have the necessary skills and knowledge to provide safe and effective care. This includes training on infection control, patient safety, customer service and patient experience and the use of medical equipment.
We will drive several quality improvement initiatives, continuously monitoring and evaluating our systems, processes, and outcomes to identify areas for improvement. This will include conducting audits, implementing best practices, and adopting evidence-based guidelines to enhance patient care and safety.
In terms of Information Systems and Technology, we have designed an overall ICT system aimed at enhancing patient care and safety, including implementation of electronic medical records, computerized physician order entry systems, medication management systems, and telemedicine platforms as necessary. These technologies will help streamline processes, reduce errors, and improve communication among healthcare providers.
Finally, from a regulatory compliance perspective, our healthcare facilities will adhere to strict regulatory standards, guidelines, and international clinical and operational benchmarks to ensure patient safety. We will follow CBAHI accreditation guidelines, as well as pursue international accreditation through JCI, or other international accreditation bodies, with a clear focus on compliance with infection control protocols, medication safety practices, and any other accreditation requirements.
Saudi Projects: Are there any sustainable or green building practices being utilized in the construction of the hospital?
Sara Rafique: Turtle Bay Hospital is targeting LEED Gold Certification, which means we are complying with the LEED construction stage guidelines closely, this takes into consideration green vehicles, pollution prevention, rainwater management, heat island reduction, light pollution reduction, indoor/outdoor water use reduction, energy and atmosphere, recyclable materials and resources, waste management, air quality performance amongst others.
Like the rest of the destination, the hospital will be powered by 100% renewable solar power, with the 760,000-plus solar panels needed to power phase one of the destination already in place and operational, along with one of the world’s largest battery storage facilities.
Saudi Projects: Are there any planned collaborations with other hospitals, research institutions, or universities?
Sara Rafique: We have several MOUs in place with healthcare facilities located close to our destinations and our goal is to further strengthen our relationship with hospitals, research institutions and universities in the near future. Visiting specialists from StewardAlf can exchange knowledge and experience with healthcare professionals and students on subjects of interest.
“Bed count for Turtle Bay Hospital is 80”
Saudi Projects: What have been the biggest challenges during the construction process so far, and how have they been addressed?
Sara Rafique: The biggest challenge over the last two years was ensuring that the architectural drawings were compliant with Ministry of Health regulations. Unlike other facilities, Hospitals and Clinics are very complicated assets to design as everything is interconnected and coordinated with medical equipment and MEP, all of which have a direct impact on the medical services and patient safety.
I am incredibly proud to say that all three of our Healthcare facilities at RSG, including Turtle Bay Hospital, Red Sea International Airport Clinic and the AMAALA Hospital have received MOH architectural approval this year.
Saudi Projects: What is your long-term vision for the hospital, and are there any plans for future expansion or additional services?
Sara Rafique: The long-term vision is to contribute to the successful delivery of the Health Sector Transformation initiatives as part of the Kingdoms Vision 2030; namely to raise the standards within health services, ease accessibility, strengthen prevention against main threats to our health and increase the life expectancy of citizens.
At RSG, we are not just developing Hospitals, we are curating a robust Healthcare ecosystem for our growing communities, bringing together international and national best practices to deliver a higher-level of patient care. We are also focusing our efforts on pre-hospital services such as Emergency Medical Services across our destinations, to align with national initiatives to improve EMS response times in the Kingdom.
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