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Insulting doctors, health workers in Saudi Arabia becoming a trend?
In Saudi Arabia, where some 1.2 million Filipinos are residing, more patients are said to be insulting and committing violent acts against doctors and other health workers, whether they are Saudi nationals or expatriates. According to a report of the news site Arab News on Friday, "insulting doctors and other employees in the health sector has become a trend in Saudi Arabia. Many insults and violent incidents have recently been reported in the media." While the Saudi police have investigated these incidents, "there are no statistics showing the number of reported cases in Saudi Arabia," the report said. Saudi Arabia remains the top employer of Filipino countries worldwide, based on the 2010 statistics of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). In the "New Hires" category for 2010, Saudi Arabia employed:
- 8,513 professional nurses, and
- 258 nursing personnel.
According to Arab News, some of the incidents of verbal attacks against doctors and health workers stem from the patients becoming annoyed with the unavailability of services in hospitals. "The phenomenon is believed to be widespread," Arab News said. Rawda Yassin, a Syrian pharmacist at a government hospital in Jeddah, related how a Saudi national insulted her after waiting for 45 minutes for her prescription. "She shouted loudly and then pushed me to see my name. She used bad words and blamed me for delaying her prescription. I felt helpless. The doctors and patients shuddered hearing her dirty language,” Yassin told Arab News. She said the Saudi woman even threatened to have her deported.
Mesfer Al-Juaid, spokesman for Jeddah police, admitted that the police do receive complaints about patients insulting doctors and health workers. He told Arab News that “when the police receive a complaint, we immediately respond and start investigations."
According to the report, Ahmad Mustafa Basha, a health consultant and member of the Health Committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, also confirmed that many doctors, nurses, and pharmacists are having problems about patients’ behavior. He explained that when doctors or health workers are physically attacked, they have the right to defend themselves. However, when they are verbally insulted, they should not rebut and instead should "complain to the hospital management and police to settle the issue,” he said.
“Health sector employees are already required not to rebut when a patient insults them. It’s part of the standard set by the World Health Organization,” he added. - VVP, GMA News
