Women’s Healthcare in Saudi Arabia

We outline the most important information about women’s healthcare in Saudi Arabia for expats looking to live and work there. Women’s healthcare in Saudi Arabia is often comparable to what is available in Western countries. In spite of the Kingdom’s stance on women’s rights, expat women should be able to anticipate and tackle most issues – once armed with the right information. Women moving to Saudi Arabia must adjust to stringent rules governing everything. These rules, which are sometimes vague, can affect the kind, quality, and access that expats have to reproductive and general women’s healthcare in Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi Healthcare System

The Saudi government has invested heavily in its healthcare system, importing high-tech machines and highly skilled expat medical professionals. Although quality of care (and insurance) varies significantly, you can generally access healthcare on par with that in your home country. Because Saudi Arabia hires extensively from outside the Kingdom, healthcare professionals mainly speak English. Therefore, you shouldn’t have too many communication issues. However, one challenge facing Saudi Arabia is the chronic shortage of medical staff. With a rising population (which is living longer), Saudi Arabia needs 10,000 more doctors by 2020 to meet demand.

Challenges to Women’s Healthcare

The cultural segregation of Saudi Arabia affects health and healthcare in the Kingdom. Most women suffer from vitamin D deficiency because they have to hide their bodies from the sun. Exercise isn’t promoted widely (and it’s blazing hot) so the Kingdom is seeing a rise in diabetes, hypertension, and other inactivity-related illnesses. In addition, unfortunately, sometimes the rigidity of gender segregation can impact the speed of healthcare delivery if, for example, male paramedics can’t quickly access an all-female space. This might not happen every day – or perhaps ever in the life of an expat – but it is important to keep in mind.

Accessing Services and Insurance

Women-focused healthcare services in Saudi Arabia can either be offered within stand-alone clinics or nestled within larger hospitals and centers. Generally, though, bigger public hospitals have larger budgets, and thus often offer some of the best care. Health insurance is now a requirement through expat job contracts. Depending on the insurance, certain aspects may or may not be covered (for example maternity costs), so it’s extremely important that you understand your insurance very well. Although public hospitals are only free for locals, they are available to expats, who need to pay the required fees.

Specialized Care and Gynecology

Finding a gynecologist that you are comfortable with is important in any new country. In Saudi Arabia, you have to go through your insurance carrier and, because it’s dependent on your job contract, finalization can take weeks or months. For more urgent needs, you can pay out-of-pocket. There are lots of options, so we advise that you ask within expat networks (or online forums) for recommendations before choosing a provider. Make sure they take your insurance and you should be able to make an appointment directly with them.

Research in Health and Medical Sciences

The Ministry has also presented qualitative initiatives to support women’s leadership in the fields of research, innovation, and development, which have contributed to an increase in the rate of classified scientific publications by 91% during the years from 2019 to 2021. In addition, the citation rate of scientific papers by female researchers increased to 52%, especially in the health and medical sciences, engineering sciences, technology, and computer sciences.

Women's Healthcare Statistics and Needs