Beamtree cements foothold in giant Saudi healthcare market with $3.6m contract
AI and data solutions specialist Beamtree (ASX: BMT) has gained a further important foothold in the vast Saudi Arabian healthcare market, signing a $3.6 million contract with the Dr Sulaiman Al Habib Medical Service Group (HMG).
Under the contract, HMG will utilise Beamtree’s market-leading technology with respect to the quality of data generated across its hospitals and support the group’s future initiatives.
HMG’s extensive network includes more than 25 medical facilities comprising hospitals, medical centres and pharmacies, establishing it as a regional healthcare market leader with over 2,000 beds and a 17,000-strong workforce.
Assisted coding
The 18-month contract will commence in June and will assist HMG in determining its future human workforce and technology resourcing requirements in its hospital coding activities.
The work will include the application of Beamtree’s assisted coding audit quality assurance technology PICQ and assessment of opportunities for automation of clinical coding itself, leveraging Beamtree’s proprietary RippleDown technology.
Chief executive officer Tim Kelsey said the contract win will assist Beamtree in seeking to introduce its PICQ product and related coding technologies across the Saudi private healthcare system.
Huge market
Saudi Arabia accounts for 60% of the Gulf Co-operation Council countries’ healthcare expenditure and the sector remains a top priority for the Saudi Arabian government.
The approximately $76 billion Saudi Arabia spent on healthcare and social development is 16.96% of its 2023 budget and the second-largest line item, behind only education.
“This is an important milestone for Beamtree as we expand our work in the kingdom to the private sector,” Mr Kelsey said.
“It is a great privilege to work with such an innovative hospital group and we are proud to bring Beamtree’s field-leading technology and expertise to HMG.”
“Our proven expertise in clinical record classification and audit together with our PICQ and automated coding software assists health services in improving the quality, reliability and use of data to create a learning health system and deliver better outcomes for patients.”
Recent contracts
Beamtree has landed several important contracts in Saudi Arabia over the past three years, including an audit of data quality in public hospitals across the country for the Centre for National Health Insurance and the development of a health information strategy.
It also signed a commercial partnership with Lean Business Services in October 2023 to create a comprehensive and integrated clinical coding solution for use by health services globally.
New appointment
Earlier this month, Beamtree announced the appointment of Mark Britnell to the board of directors.
Professor Britnell has worked in more than 81 countries, advising governments and health systems on improving outcomes and value with expertise in supporting transformation through the adoption of digital technologies, including AI and workforce automation.
He is an active leader in all Beamtree’s key growth markets including Australia, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Canada and the UK and was formerly the global head of health for KPMG.
He also chairs the Beamtree Global Impact Committee, a group of international experts who promote thought leadership on improving health outcomes in global healthcare.