NSHR cites poor safety at Jazan hospital

JEDDAH: In a highly critical report, the National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) has identified 17 shortcomings at Jazan General Hospital where several people died in a fire last week, including poor safety measures, locked emergency doors, and administrative problems.

In a press statement on Monday, the NSHR said it produced the report after a fact-finding visit to the facility in the wake of the fire last Thursday morning that killed 25 people and injured over 100.
The NSHR also said that there was a lack of controls and coordination between main and subcontractors carrying out security measures at the hospital, including inadequate training of personnel in fire and other emergency operations.
The report also pointed out other problems unrelated to the fire, which included inadequate staff that stemmed from poor coordination between the Ministry of Health and universities, resulting in poor care for patients. The hospital also had a lack of beds.
The NSHR also commented on the state of hospitals in the Kingdom, claiming that many did not provide adequate care commensurate with the huge budgetary allocations by the state under Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman.
The statement said conditions at hospitals and health centers across the Kingdom were not conducive to proper patient care and increased the number of medical errors and deaths.
Some of the reasons include patients having to wait up to a year for appointments to see doctors; some hospitals refusing emergency medical care; and the rise of infectious diseases at certain institutions without adequate explanation and research instituted.