RIYADH: Officials from the Saudi Food and Drug Authority are this week participating in a second event in the space of two weeks at which they will work to enhance local and international collaborations in the medical and pharmaceutical sectors.

The authority signed a memorandum of understanding with King Abdulaziz University on the opening day of the Global Health Exhibition 2024 in Riyadh, which began on Monday and continues until Wednesday.

The agreement, signed by the authority’s CEO, Hisham Aljadhey, and the university’s president, Tareef Alaama, is designed to encourage collaboration in rehabilitation services, training, consulting, studies and research, officials said. Key areas for cooperation include the designation of university labs as reference laboratories, the development of educational programs about legislation related to medical devices, and the use of artificial intelligence in the pharmaceutical industry.

The aim is to advance innovation in healthcare in the Kingdom while improving levels of medical and regulatory expertise, the agency said. It added that both organizations want to help build a healthier future for the Kingdom through empowerment of young people by providing training and jobs in the medical field.

Aljadhey also led a delegation from the Kingdom at the 19th annual meeting of the International Conference of Drug Regulatory Authorities in New Delhi last week. The five-day event was hosted by the Indian government in collaboration with the World Health Organization.

“The international presence of member states is a testament to the shared goals we seek to achieve in ensuring the safety, efficacy and quality of medical products worldwide,” Aljadhey said.

Emphasizing the importance of international cooperation, he added that he is confident collective efforts will help to develop innovative solutions and strengthen regulatory frameworks in the sector, thereby enhancing global healthcare outcomes.

RIYADH: A Riyadh hospital has launched a new service that could dramatically improve stroke outcomes by treating patients while stuck in traffic.

At the Global Health Exhibition in Riyadh on Monday, the King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre launched the Mobile Stroke Unit.

The service can deliver immediate care to stroke victims, significantly improving recovery outcomes during the critical first hour after symptoms appear, also known as the “golden hour.”

The Mobile Stroke Unit addresses one of the main challenges in stroke care: Delays in reaching hospitals, particularly in congested urban areas like Riyadh.

Traffic often prolongs transport times, delaying critical treatment, lowering the chances of recovery and increasing the risk of death or lifelong disability.

KFSHRC’s Mobile Stroke Unit aims to overcome this challenge, providing stroke patients with immediate medical care en route to the hospital.

Once the Saudi Red Crescent Authority receives a report from a stroke victim’s family indicating symptoms such as arm weakness, facial drooping or speech difficulty, the Mobile Stroke Unit is dispatched immediately.

Inside the ambulance, a team of specialists, including a vascular neurologist, a critical care nurse, a paramedic and a CT scan technician, work together to diagnose and treat the patient before arriving at the hospital.

Dr. Fahad Al-Ajlan, a stroke neurologist at KFSHRC, highlighted the unit’s capabilities in an interview with Arab News.

“Basically, anything for a stroke patient, this emergency unit can deliver, starting from the diagnostic,” he said.

“We have here inside the unit advanced cutting-edge technology in addition to a cutting edge point-of-care lab and advanced medicine equipped with an AI for imaging.

“After establishing diagnosis, we could deliver the management for both ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes, and all the studies have shown that using this ambulance would lead to improved clinical outcome for both strokes and save the healthcare system a lot of budget.”

One of the most innovative features of the Mobile Stroke Unit is its ability to conduct CT scans and brain imaging while in transit, enabling medical teams to immediately determine whether the stroke is caused by a blocked artery or hemorrhage.

This allows staff to administer appropriate treatment on the spot, potentially saving millions of brain cells with each minute gained.

Patients treated within the first hour of symptom onset have a 70 percent higher chance of regaining normal function compared to those who experience delays in treatment, the hospital said.

The introduction of the Mobile Stroke Unit reflects Saudi Arabia’s commitment to advancing healthcare innovation as part of its Vision 2030 goals.

Stroke is a leading cause of death in the Kingdom, ranking third after heart disease and diabetes. By reducing the time between symptom onset and treatment, KFSHRC aims to lower the mortality rate and improve stroke outcomes for survivors, significantly improving their quality of life.

KFSHRC is recognized as a pioneering hospital and is well known for its medical research in Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East.