Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare puts focus on inclusion for people with disabilities

Currently, more than 1 billion people have a disability in our world of over 7 billion, and to promote their rights, the United Nations proclaimed Dec. 3 as the annual observance of “International Day of Persons with Disabilities.”

What is a disability?

A disability is defined by a mental illness, or a physical, cognitive, or sensory impairment.

Why is inclusion for persons with disabilities so important?

According to the United Nations, “Evidence and experience shows that when barriers to their inclusion are removed and persons with disabilities are empowered to participate fully in societal life, their entire community benefits. Barriers faced by persons with disabilities are, therefore, a detriment to society as a whole, and accessibility is necessary to achieve progress and development for all.”

Inclusion at JHAH 

At JHAH, our inclusivity initiatives strive to create a friendly, supportive, and more accommodating environment for persons with disabilities through the following certification and services:

Mowaamah certification 

In 2019, Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare (JHAH) was accredited as one of only three health care organizations in the Kingdom with Mowaamah “Gold” certification. Mowaamah is an accreditation by the Ministry of Labor (MOL) and Social Development designed for organizations who wish to enhance their work environments to be comprehensive and more supportive of persons with disabilities (PwD). 

At JHAH, the subcommittee for PwD provides oversight to the JHAH Disability Supportive Improvement Plan to ensure that JHAH’s governance, recruitment policies, premises, products, services, equipment, and training programs are inclusive for persons with disabilities. 

“The high score reflects your commitment to enhance your work environment to be a friendly environment for PwD. Also, I would like to thank you and your team for the impressive work that was put into this initiative,” said Musaad Alqadhi, MOL and Social Development, Mowaamah certification program auditor.

“This is a call for health care organizations to join us in providing an accessible future for all,” said Hadi Al Irjan, chairman, PwD subcommittee. He added, “We are proud to be associated with this noble initiative. To us, it is all about going through the journey to create sustainable change in our environment and not just about receiving the accreditation.”

JHAH is among the few health care organizations Kingdomwide that chose to pursue this MOL initiative and to reflect its standard in its policies, processes, and day-to-day procedures to create a sustainable culture.

JHAH’s accessible services for persons with disabilities

JHAH makes every effort to provide a comfortable and inclusive environment for our patients and visitors. JHAH’s dedicated teams are on hand to answer any questions you may have about our facilities or aspects of care.

JHAH accessible facilities for patients and visitors include:

• Drop-off and pickup points
• Accessible parking spaces
• Valet parking for outpatient appointments
• Wheelchair accessible entrances
• Wheelchairs available at every entrance
• Digital wayfinding mobile app; guiding you with accessible routes
• Sign language interpretation services
• Electronic beds during admission
• Hands-free door opening sensors
• Accessible bathrooms
• Height adjustable dining tables in the cafeteria.