Jeddah: Jeddah Health Cluster 2 launched three advanced technological initiatives for the Hajj season 1446 AH, significantly enhancing its participation in the holy sites. The initiatives aim to improve pilgrims' health and safety, accelerate medical response, and ensure timely critical care. Overseen by the cluster's Executive Management for Digital Health, the efforts leverage innovative technologies and a high level of digital readiness to provide proactive and secure healthcare for all pilgrims.
According to Saudi Press Agency, the key initiatives include an automated early warning score system, a continuous monitoring system for heatstroke cases, and a live monitoring system for cardiac cases during ambulance transport.
The automated early warning score system is a groundbreaking first for urgent-care centers in the holy sites. Based on smart clinical protocols, it instantly reads and analyzes vital signs upon recording. The system is designed to expedite case classification in crowded emergency departments during peak times, standardize clinical triage, and reduce reliance on human estimation. Ultimately, it seeks to improve clinical outcomes, decrease the need for intensive-care transfers, and enhance coordination among healthcare teams through a unified, life-saving approach.
In response to prevalent heatstroke and heat stress during Hajj, the cluster introduced a smart monitoring system for heatstroke cases. The initiative utilizes a wireless, waterproof sensor that operates for up to eight days on a single charge, continuously measuring body temperature remotely. Its primary advantages include instant and accurate real-time tracking of pilgrims' thermal status, enabling medical teams to make proactive decisions in cases of elevated temperature. The sensor's ability to function in harsh field conditions like sweat and ablution also plays a crucial role in reducing complications from delayed detection of heatstroke signs.
The third initiative is a live monitoring system for cardiac cases during ambulance transport, a first of its kind. The system integrates smart vital monitoring technologies directly into ambulances, particularly for patients arriving from King Abdulaziz International Airport. Pilgrims are equipped with wearable devices that measure ECG, pulse rate, oxygen saturation, respiration, and temperature, with this data live-streamed to referral hospitals such as King Abdullah Medical Complex and King Fahd Hospital.
The innovative system facilitates real-time case monitoring during transit, allows for direct visual communication between the consulting physician at the hospital and the accompanying ambulance physician when necessary, and enables immediate medical decisions. It also ensures that emergency teams can prepare early for patient reception, providing proactive oversight and uninterrupted care.