Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — Around 70 percent of health workers who are engaged in the battle against coronavirus around the world are women, according to an expert. “Most of these women are working on the frontlines in rendering healthcare services with attending and nursing COVID-19 patients,” said Dr. Ghada Bint Yousef, vice dean for students’ affairs at King Saud University.

She was among the four Saudi experts in the health, educational, and media fields who addressed the 14th session of the Muneerah Bint Mohammed Al-Melhem Forum for Local Community Services at the Prince Abdulrahman Al-Sudairy Cultural Center. Their talks at the forum titled “Safe Return...challenges and opinions” focused on the pros and cons of the coronavirus pandemic on social, economic, health and psychological aspects of life. The session was held under the patronage of Princess Noura Bint Muhammad Al-Saud.

On his part, Dr. Muhammad Al-Shayea, president of Al-Jouf University, said that the changes brought about by the pandemic would contribute to accelerating the achievements of development and positive social changes.

In his speech, Dr. Abdul Hamid Al-Habib, director general of the National Center for the Promotion of Mental Health, said that the pandemic upended the lives of many people with a massive change in lifestyles and that impacted profoundly on mental health.

Dr. Ali Al-Anzi, professor of media at King Saud University, said that the safe return to normal life requires a lot of attention from various sectors so as to ensure the highest degree of health safety, and the resumption of activities of business and economic sectors with their full potential.