Ministry issues new rules for medical licenses in public, private sectors

• Resident doctors and assistant dentists can’t practice privately without licensed training supervision.

• The ministerial decision allows doctors at the level of general practitioner to work in private clinics, private health dispensaries, and private medical centers

• Doctors are allowed to work in private hospitals, provided that they begin their work in accident departments, outpatient clinics, or hospital wards

The Ministry of Health has announced new guidelines and regulations for obtaining licenses to practice in both public and private medical sectors. These guidelines were detailed in Ministerial Resolution No. 71 of 2024, issued by Dr. Ahmed Al-Awadhi, the Minister of Health.

Al-Awadhi said, resident doctors and registered assistant dentists are prohibited from practicing in the private sector unless they are working under the supervision of licensed training establishments, adhering to specific conditions and controls set forth for such arrangements.

It is also required when requesting promotion to a higher technical level than doctors and dentists working in the private medical sector: The doctor must obtain 100 educational units of continuing medical education within the first classification approved by the Kuwait Institute for Medical Specialties (KIMS).

The decision affirms that it is not permissible to grant or renew licenses to practice the profession of medicine, dentistry, and allied health professions for workers in the private medical sector who are over 65 years of age except after conducting the medical examinations determined by the ministry to verify that all the required medical fitness conditions are met, provided that the medical examination is repeated every two years.

The ministerial decision states that anyone whose application is rejected may file a grievance with the Undersecretary of the Ministry, provided that the grievance is submitted within 15 days from the date the applicant or his legal representative receives the rejection decision, or from the date 60 days have passed since the application was submitted without a response from the Licensing Department, and the undersecretary must decide on the grievance within 30 days from the date of its submission with a reasoned decision.

Otherwise, the grievance shall be considered rejected, and the decision issued by the Undersecretary regarding the grievance shall be final. The decision indicates that the titles of practitioners of medicine and allied professions in the government medical sector apply to their counterparts in the private medical sector, taking into account the years of medical experience required to fill the title in a specific specialty, provided that the years of experience are in the same specialty.

The ministerial decision confirms that it allows doctors at the level of general practitioner to work in private clinics, private health dispensaries, and private medical centers. They are also allowed to work in private hospitals, provided that they begin their work in accident departments, outpatient clinics, or hospital wards and under the supervision of those above them in responsibility.

They are allowed to work in specialized surgeries. The decision also authorizes allowing dentists at the general practitioner level to work in private clinics, health dispensaries, dental centers, and private hospitals, provided that they begin their work in dental departments in outpatient and accident clinics and are not allowed to work in operating rooms.