Oman’s Ministry of Health marked World Health Day on 7 April with the launch of a package of digital and virtual healthcare services, including virtual urgent care in general medicine and remote consultations for premarital examinations, as the ministry accelerates its push to digitalise healthcare delivery ahead of its 11th Five-Year Plan covering 2026 to 2030.
Virtual urgent care enables patients to receive general medical consultations remotely without visiting a facility, while the remote premarital consultation service is designed to reduce waiting times and streamline procedures for applicants. Both services form part of a broader National Centre for Virtual Health, which has been operational in a piloting capacity across several specialties.
The ministry disclosed measurable progress from existing digital programmes. An AI-supported retinal screening service for diabetic patients has examined more than 25,000 patients, significantly reducing waiting lists. The system operates by transmitting medical images from hospitals and health centres to the National Centre for Virtual Health for analysis and reporting. Telemedicine services across six specialties are currently supporting more than 1,200 patients remotely, while 45,000 virtual consultations were conducted in 2025. Pharmacy waiting times have been reduced from 40 minutes to 15 minutes, and 65% of health institutions are now linked to the PACS/Shifa digital systems.
Pipeline services under study include remote intensive care monitoring and remote stroke management. The ministry is also developing a national genomic database and investing in AI-driven predictive analysis tools under its Vision 2040 digital health strategy. A major infrastructure project — the National Centre for Women’s and Children’s Health at Sultan Haitham City — is also among the priorities of the incoming five-year plan.
Editor’s Note: Oman’s digital health trajectory is among the more methodical in the Gulf, with quantified outcomes and a structured five-year framework giving the programme credibility beyond announcement-stage initiatives. Watch whether the 11th Five-Year Plan formalises procurement pathways that attract regional and international health technology vendors into the Omani market.
