Number of nurses up 23% in Saudi Arabia during 7 years, reaching over 235,000

Saudi Gazette Report

RIYADH — The number of nursing staff in Saudi Arabia, who are registered with the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties, has increased to more than 235,000 during the year 2023.

The total number of male and female nurses recorded an increase of more than 23 percent during the period between 2016 and 2023, according to a report released by the Ministry of Health on the occasion of International Nurses Day that was celebrated on May 12.

The total number of registered and classified nursing staff in the Saudi health sector during the year 2023 has increased to 235,461. An earlier report published by the Ministry of Health in 2018 showed that the number of registered nurses reached 184,565, of whom 70,319 were Saudi nationals. Foreign nurses comprise about 70 percent of the total number of nurses and are mostly Indian, Filipino and Malaysian.

According to the latest report, there are more than 106,000 nurses working under the Ministry of Health, while their number in other government agencies reached approximately 15,000. There has been an increase of 67,000 male and female nurses in the private sector, bringing the total number in the health sector to 235,461. There are 14 Saudi universities, which have departments with nursing specializations.

The ministry, in partnership with the relevant government agencies, is implementing the strategy to encourage the nursing profession, as an initiative of the Health Sector Transformation Program, one of the Saudi Vision 2030 programs in Supporting health personnel in the Kingdom to improve the provision of high-quality health services. This program has contributed to supporting and empowering the nursing career as a humanitarian profession. It also comes in fulfillment of the objectives of the Health Sector Transformation Program.

It is noteworthy that the increase in the number of male and female nurses in the health sector in the Kingdom comes as a reflection of the government’s utmost keenness on the human and professional aspect of the nursing career with attaching sublime values of passion, empathy and proficiency. The government also makes relentless efforts to improve healthcare services and competence of the health staff, as well as to enhance the vital role of nursing in providing high-quality humane care to patients in various hospitals and medical centers.