Patient-Reported Outcomes in Saudi Arabia: How PROMs and PREMs Support Value-Based Care
How hospitals in Saudi Arabia can collect PROMs and PREMs to support value-based care.
Key takeaways
- The Council of Health Insurance developed a PROMs strategy to support value-based bundled payments, while the Saudi Centre for Value in Health integrates patient-reported outcomes into its national perspective.
- A Saudi study confirmed that collecting ICHOM low back pain PROMs repeatedly over time is operationally feasible and can be linked to cost data.
- Insurers like Tawuniya and Bupa Arabia are investing in payer-provider pilots using international ICHOM standards and the OECD PaRIS initiative across Saudi hospitals.
Reviewed by the CareSync Medical Team · Last reviewed
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Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) capture how patients say their health, symptoms and function have changed. Patient-reported experience measures (PREMs) capture how patients experienced their care. Together with clinical outcomes, they show whether care delivered real value. As Saudi Arabia moves towards value-based healthcare, hospitals, health clusters and insurers are starting to measure outcomes rather than only activity, and collecting patient-reported data at scale is the practical challenge.
Key takeaways
- Saudi policy is pointing to outcomes. The Saudi Centre for Value in Health's perspective states that individual outcomes involve clinical outcomes, patient-reported outcomes and experience measures, and the Council of Health Insurance has developed a PROMs strategy aimed at supporting value-based bundled payments.
- Pilots are underway. A payer-provider pilot between July 2024 and July 2025 integrated patient-reported and clinician-reported outcome measures across four tertiary private hospitals with maternity departments, using international standards.
- PROMs are feasible in real-world settings. A Saudi study using the ICHOM low back pain standard set concluded that PROMs can be collected reliably over time and linked to cost data.
- Insurers are investing. Tawuniya and Meena Health partnered with a digital health platform to embed ICHOM standards and the OECD PaRIS initiative in the local health system.
- Collection is the hard part. Standard sets exist; the effort is in capturing responses consistently, at the right time, in Arabic, and feeding results back to clinicians.
PROMs, PREMs and clinical measures: what is the difference?
| Measure | What it captures | Example | Who uses it |
|---|---|---|---|
| PROM | Patient's view of health status, symptoms and function | Quality-of-life questionnaire such as EQ-5D, pain and mobility scores | Clinicians, payers, researchers |
| PREM | Patient's experience of the care process | Communication, waiting, involvement in decisions | Quality teams, hospital leaders |
| CROM | Clinician-reported outcome | Clinician assessment of recovery or complications | Clinical teams |
| Clinical outcome | Measured result of care | Blood pressure, HbA1c, readmission | Clinicians, payers |
A Saudi study among 594 people with diabetes at Ministry of Health primary healthcare centres in Jeddah explored the association between experience and outcome measures, concluding that integrating both into routine diabetes care can support value-based delivery.
Why does this matter now in Saudi Arabia?
| Development | What it signals |
|---|---|
| Saudi Centre for Value in Health defines value as best outcomes with fair and efficient use of resources | Outcomes are part of national thinking on value |
| Council of Health Insurance PROMs strategy | Payers are moving towards outcome-linked payment |
| Bupa Arabia payer-provider pilot with an ICHOM-approved partner | Real hospitals are testing standard outcome sets |
| Tawuniya and Meena Health programme using ICHOM and PaRIS | Insurers are funding outcome measurement at scale |
| ICHOM low back pain study in Saudi Arabia | Repeated PROM collection is operationally feasible |
What makes PROM collection succeed or fail?
| Success factor | What goes wrong without it |
|---|---|
| Standardised instruments, not home-made questions | Results cannot be compared across providers or time |
| Arabic versions that are validated and licensed where required | Misunderstood questions and legal exposure |
| Collection built into the care pathway at set points | Low and uneven response rates |
| Easy channel for patients | Paper forms and call-backs consume staff time |
| Results visible to the clinician at the visit | PROMs become reporting exercise, not care tool |
| Linking outcomes to cost and pathway data | Insight stays disconnected from decisions |
| Privacy and consent | Sensitive health data collected without clear permission |
A five-step plan for hospitals and health clusters
- Choose one condition. Pick a pathway with an existing standard set, such as low back pain, diabetes or maternity.
- Select validated instruments. Confirm Arabic versions and licence terms before building anything.
- Set collection points. Decide when patients are asked, for example at baseline, after treatment and at set follow-ups.
- Give patients one channel. Send questionnaires by app or message, with reminders, in Arabic.
- Close the loop. Show results to clinicians at the next visit and review pathway-level results quarterly.
How CareSync helps
CareSync is a white-label health-tech ecosystem built in Riyadh. CareSync Network and CareSync Clinic are designed to deliver questionnaires at defined points in a care pathway, with reminders, Arabic and English support and results visible to the care team, subject to the licence terms of each instrument. CareSync is not a research instrument owner, and clinical interpretation stays with clinicians.
Frequently asked questions
What are PROMs? Questionnaires completed by patients about their own health, symptoms and function, without clinician interpretation.
What are PREMs? Questionnaires about the patient's experience of care, such as communication, waiting times and involvement in decisions.
What is ICHOM? The International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measurement, which publishes standard sets of outcomes by condition. Saudi pilots have used ICHOM standards.
Is PROM collection required in Saudi Arabia? The Council of Health Insurance has a PROMs strategy aimed at value-based payment, and pilots are underway. Check current requirements with payers and regulators.
How often should PROMs be collected? At defined points in the pathway set by clinical leaders, with repeated collection over time giving more insight than a single snapshot.
Can PROMs be collected on a mobile app? Yes, when the instrument licence permits and the delivery keeps the wording and scoring intact.
How do PROMs support value-based care? They show whether treatment improved what matters to patients, allowing comparison of pathways and linking outcomes to cost.
How is PROM data protected? Responses are health data, so consent, access control and secure storage should be designed in under the PDPL.
Measure what matters to patients
Saudi Arabia's shift to value is making outcomes visible. Providers who start with one pathway, use standard instruments and give clinicians the results will be ready as payers move towards outcome-based contracts.
Planning outcome measurement? Book a CareSync demo at CareSync.
About CareSync
Prepared by the CareSync Medical Team. This article is educational, not medical advice or a substitute for clinical, legal or regulatory review. Research findings are source-specific, not measured CareSync outcomes.
Sources
- Saudi Medical Journal. Patient-reported outcome measurements in clinical trials in Saudi Arabia.
- A successful model for KSA-based payor-provider collaborative in maternity care. PubMed Central.
- ICHOM. Advancing value-based care in Saudi Arabia through patient-reported outcomes, 2025.
- ICHOM. Tawuniya and Meena Health partner with The Clinician.
- Value in Health Regional Issues. PREMs and PROMs among patients with diabetes in Saudi Arabia.