Muhammad Al-Hassani
Okaz
WE read every now and again about cases of medical malpractice in the Kingdom. Several such incidents were recently reported at hospitals located in small cities and towns. For example, there have been several cases of medical malpractice in hospitals in Jazan. There was even one that resulted in a baby boy losing his right arm. The one-month-old boy was injected by mistake in the hand, leading to his health deteriorating. His father took him to a private hospital in Asir to have his arm amputated because officials from Jazan Health Affairs told him there was no space for him at the hospital located close to where they live.
One thing is sure and that is that if this little boy survives, he will only have one arm all his life because of this huge medical error. This is a catastrophe in the full sense of the word. The child is now disabled and his disability might be an obstacle preventing him from living a full life in the future. He might have learning difficulties and may need to put up with people pitying him. He will also have a hard time finding a good job when he grows up. In a nutshell, he will continue to suffer all his life because of a medical error that would not have happened if the hospital had been manned by a properly qualified medical staff.
Perhaps the reason medical errors continue to happen is the fact that the Ministry of Health does not properly inspect hospitals in the south of the Kingdom to ensure that health workers have the right training and qualifications. The ministry needs to do something about this. In advanced countries, victims of medical malpractice receive hundreds of thousands of dollars in compensation. If they die then their families receive millions of dollars. Victims here, however, receive a paltry sum.
