Over 100 Saudi doctors on a medical mission to fight COVID-19 in Egypt

A master's degree student reacts as medical staff member checks her temperature amid concerns over the coronavirus (COVID-19), following the suspension of study for only undergraduate students at Cairo University to prevent it spreading, in Cairo, Egypt March 15, 2020. (REUTERS)

• The volunteers are part of a joint effort by the Saudi cultural attaché in Cairo and the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population

CAIRO: Over 100 highly qualified Saudi doctors, in Egypt on a medical fellowship program, have decided to stay on and help Egyptian hospitals by providing services to patients who have tested positive for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
The volunteers are part of a joint effort by the Saudi cultural attaché in Cairo and the Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population.
“There are 100 to 120 Saudi doctors of different specializations here in Egypt,” said Dr. Abdul Aziz Muteb Al-Saadoun, a dermatologist who is part of the medical fellowship program. “When the pandemic first began to spread, we decided we would not ignore our responsibility as doctors and leave our positions here in Egypt vacant. Some of us work in emergency rooms, and as such, we are considered the first line of defense,” said Al-Saadoun.
“We are fighting the pandemic alongside our Egyptian colleagues. We are here to fulfill our mission to provide medical services to the Egyptian people. I consider myself an ambassador of my country, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” Dr. Mohammed Abdul-Aziz Al-Shneiber said.  
Dr. Al-Saeed Abdel-Hadi, who took part in a previous Egyptian-Saudi fellowship program, said that Saudi Arabia is a pioneer in sending young doctors to train in clinical specialties, not only in Egypt, but in some of the largest medical establishments across the world.
“I’ve met many Saudi doctors, and I can confirm that their level of education and skill is no less than any consultants in major American or British hospitals. I pray that Egypt benefits from the Saudi experience, that it establishes its own Council for Health Specialties, that it develops a system that is compatible with international regulations for training doctors,” Abdel-Hadi said. He added that he hoped training would take place “in all Egyptian health units and hospitals, regardless of their administrative affiliation, according to a timetable and fixed scientific content that everyone agrees upon.”
“I have full confidence that Egypt is able to develop and modernize its health care system,” Abdel-Hadi told Arab News.