Egypt's Minister of Health and Population, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, Sunday witnessed the signing of a cooperation protocol between his ministry and Novartis Egypt, a leading pharmaceutical company. The protocol aims to modernise the automated system for cardiac catheterisation, a procedure that involves inserting a thin tube into the heart to diagnose or treat various conditions. The protocol is part of the ministry's plan to cooperate with the private sector to provide the best medical services to citizens, and the presidential initiative to end waiting lists for cardiac catheterization. Hossam Abdel Ghaffar, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Population, said that the protocol will provide the necessary support to upgrade the system by Data Management Systems (DMS), a company that specializes in digitizing and automating the health sector in Egypt. He added that the minister urged the use of the database of heart disease patients in the National Waiting Lists Project, to facilitate data governance and improve health maps in Egypt. He emphasized the importance of following up on patients after surgical operations, especially cardiac catheterization, to ensure the best health and therapeutic services for heart patients in all governorates. He also highlighted the importance of prevention, awareness, and health education for heart diseases and chronic diseases, and the role of the database of patients registered in health initiatives to collect and analyze data and provide information about the most vulnerable groups. Ahmed Nassar, the Chairperson of the Scientific Committee for Cardiology at the Ministry of Health and Population, stated that the committee follows international medical guidelines for performing cardiac catheterization. He noted that the committee is working on automating all cardiac catheterization procedures, to serve heart patients through the patient database and follow up on them after the catheterization through coding, as well as evaluating the medical centers that offer the service. Sherif Amin, Chairperson and Managing Director of Novartis Egypt, said that the company always strives to build sustainable partnerships with the Ministry of Health and Population, as the protocol will contribute to achieving a service boom for heart patients in Egypt, and reduce the burden of heart disease on them.
