There's a notable quietness inside the corridors of Dr. Erfan and Bagedo General Hospital following the Ministry of Health's decision to suspend service. The decision to shut down the hospital came after the eight-year old son of a prominent businessman died due to a medical error during surgery.
The fatal mistake was one of a series of errors reported at the hospital. The Ministry of Health said the hospital would remain closed "until it regulates its medical and technical functions in accordance with medical standards."
More than 3,000 employees, the majority of whom are Saudi, now wait while the Shariya Medical Commission decides on their future.
An Arab News reporter was welcomed at the gates of the hospital by a staff member. He wore a smile yet his manner was one of shock and optimism. He expressed his feelings about the decision using a Qur'anic verse: "You may dislike a thing while it is good for you and you may love a thing while it is evil for you."
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MOH Shuts Down 9 Private Health Facilities in Riyadh
The Ministry of Heath shut down nine private health facilities in Riyadh yesterday. The five medical complexes, two polyclinics and two optical clinics were found to be in violation of ministry regulations.
Operations at the facilities will be suspended until they meet ministry standards.
Health Minister, Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, ordered the move as part of a crackdown on health facilities that fail to meet ministry standards.
Read MoreThe Kingdom faces a remarkable increase in the incidence of differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC), observed a lecturer at an international symposium that opened in Riyadh Monday.
More than 1,000 delegates from the Kingdom and GCC countries attended the opening of the three-day International Saudi Society of Endocrinology and Metabolism Conference.
Dr. Ali Al-Zahrani, consultant endocrinologist and head of the Molecular Endocrinology Department at the King Faisal Specialist Hospital (KFSH) in Riyadh, pointed out that DTC is the fourth most common cancer and the second most common in women, preceded only by breast cancer. He said that the majority of the cases are referred to KFSH and Research Center in Riyadh.
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Decision to Shut Down Hospital Hasty and Unjust, Says Dr. Erfan
JEDDAH The director of Dr. Erfan & Bagedo General Hospital said the Ministry of Health's decision to shut down the hospital is hasty, arbitrary and unjust.
Dr. Muhammad Erfan said: "Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah refused to have a meeting with me in order to clarify the true picture and that could have contributed to the shutdown."
He said the hospital was serving about 50,000 patients a month.
Speaking to Al-Watan newspaper, Dr. Erfan said at least seven hospitals in Jeddah refused to receive 280 inpatients in the hospital due to a lack of space.
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Read More22-year-old Amal yet Another Victim of Medical Negligence
DAMMAM The 22-year-old Saudi woman named Amal Al-Metairi is a victim of Thalassemia and medical negligence.
She breathed her last at Dammam Medical Complex on Sunday after battling for her life for nearly a week.
Amal, a senior college student, was unable to accomplish her dream of securing her bachelor's degree in geography.
Thalassemia is a hereditary blood disorder in which the body makes an abnormal form of hemoglobin that results in excessive destruction of red blood cells.
Read MorePatients' Rights Not a Matter of Choice, Conference Told
RIYADH The 2nd patient relations symposium opened at InterContinental Hotel here Saturday with the participation of more than 220 healthcare officials and employees.
Over 20 experts from the Kingdom, France, Spain, Australia, the US and GCC countries will speak at the two-day symposium.
Dr. Abdullah Bin Hamad Bin Zar'ah, Chairman of the Symposium and the Executive Director of Clinical Affairs at Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Humanitarian City in Riyadh, said the majority of the participants were from the Ministry of Health hospitals.
Read MoreNearly one in five Americans need frequent relief from heartburn. If you're among them, you're probably looking forward to the holidays with a mixture of anticipation and queasiness. The six weeks from Thanksgiving to New Year's Day often turn into a caloric free-for-all, and holiday menus are loaded with the foods that are on most heartburn sufferers' "danger" lists.
Read MoreABHA A medical error at a private hospital in Abha paralyzed the arm of a child.
The child's father said his wife was due to give birth at a government hospital in Al-Namas, when the doctors told him that she needs a Caesarean operation.
He took her to a private hospital, and she gave normal birth. After her birth, a medical report indicated that the baby was suffering from breathing difficulties, and lack of movement in the upper left membrane.
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