Abdulaziz Al Suwaihi

Oman's 'Desert Doctor' who pioneered mobile healthcare in the Arabian Peninsula

Dr. Abdulaziz Al Suwaihi (1930-2011) transformed healthcare access across the Arabian Peninsula through his innovative mobile medical units. After graduating from Cairo University's medical school in 1955, he returned to Oman where he designed the first camel-drawn ambulance system, later evolving into motorized mobile clinics that reached remote desert communities.

His 1960s initiative 'Health on Wheels' established Oman's first preventive healthcare programs, vaccinating over 100,000 children against polio and smallpox. Al Suwaihi developed culturally sensitive health education materials using Bedouin poetry and proverbs, making medical advice accessible to illiterate populations.

During Sultan Qaboos' modernization efforts beginning in 1970, he founded the Sultan Qaboos Hospital for Tropical Medicine - the first facility dedicated to researching diseases like malaria and dengue in the region. His 1972 manual Medicine Without Borders remains a standard text for rural healthcare.

Al Suwaihi's legacy includes the Al Suwaihi Health Foundation, which continues his work through solar-powered mobile clinics. Read more at Omani Health Heritage or view his 1975 documentary Healing the Desert on Internet Archive.