Saturday, 18 July 2026
Egypt’s first virtual hospital set to open in Ismailia
Egypt is preparing to open its first virtual hospital in the northeastern governorate of Ismailia, the head of the General Authority for Healthcare said during an inspection of the facility’s final preparations.
Ahmed El-Sobky said the hospital would be the first of its kind in Egypt and Africa, the third in the Middle East and the largest in the Arab world.
The facility is designed to support remote healthcare services, speed up medical decision-making and improve the efficiency and quality of care through digital technologies and artificial intelligence, the authority said in a statement.
The hospital includes 119 specialised digital and operational units, including nine virtual clinics, seven remote emergency units, four virtual intensive-care units, 32 electronic triage units, 27 remote cardiology units, 12 digital radiology units and 26 command-and-control units.
It will provide remote specialist consultations, patient monitoring and support for emergency and intensive-care departments, while connecting healthcare facilities through a unified digital system for the rapid exchange of medical data.
El-Sobky said the project would help expand access to specialised medical services for residents of governorates covered by Egypt’s universal health insurance system, reducing the need for patients to travel long distances.
He also announced an international training programme for doctors and nurses working at the hospital, including specialised missions to Italy and Germany to transfer expertise in virtual hospital operations, digital medicine and smart healthcare management.
“Investment in human resources is no less important than investment in technology,” El-Sobky said, stressing that digital transformation would only succeed with qualified medical and nursing staff.
The authority said the hospital would undergo further technical and operational testing before its expected official opening in the coming period.