JEDDAH, 25 January — Muneera Hamdan Al-Osimy, director of nursing research and training at King Fahd Hospital in Jeddah, has received offers from a number of American universities to translate her book which was published here last November. The book deals with nursing in Saudi Arabia and was written to document the role of Saudi pioneers in the field.
Al-Osimy, who is also the head of the Regional Nursing Committee, a World Health Organization consultant and a former director of nursing in the Western Region, spoke to Arab News about her views and expectations for the nursing profession in the Kingdom. She recently received the Gulf and Kingdom Ideal Nurse awards and she is naturally very optimistic about the future of nursing. "The demand on the nursing institutes and colleges is increasing. This means that the new generation has begun to realize the importance of this career. It also means that society's attitude toward the profession has begun to change," she said.
Asked about the shortage of Saudi nurses and the lack of interest among Saudis, Al-Osimy said many countries had a shortage of native nurses. The lack of enthusiasm is due to the huge responsibilities and the long working hours involved, she added.
In the Kingdom, most high school graduates prefer to enroll in medicine because they have to spend five years studying for a nursing degree. Most graduates say that they prefer to become doctors as it requires only an additional year of study, Al-Osimy said.
Another problem is the social attitude toward nursing; however, in the last few years, that attitude has changed. Al-Osimy noted that the nursing profession had advantages which should make it attractive. Good salaries are available and there are plenty of opportunities for nursing graduates, she said.
Commenting on the major reasons for the absence of Saudi nurses in local hospitals, she said: "First of all, I'd like to clarify one point. All nurses, regardless of their country of origin, share the same ethical and professional values. If we can have more Saudi nurses in our hospitals, it will have practical advantages. The language barrier is the main problem patients face with expatriate nurses. Also, a Saudi nurse will understand the social and religious needs of patients better than non-Saudi nurses."
The most common complaint concerning Saudi nurses in private hospitals is that they cannot be employed as staff nurses because they will not do shift-work. And because of the high salaries expected by Saudi nurses, hospitals recruit expatriates. Al-Osimy answered these complaints. "Figures show that Saudis work mainly as staff nurses in government hospitals and that they do work in shifts. As a matter of fact, Saudi nurses prefer to work in the public sector because of job security and better financial benefits. Government hospitals still suffer from a huge shortage of Saudi nurses," she said.
Al-Osimy spoke of her appreciation for Princess Jawhara bint Ibrahim, the wife of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd, who established an annual award last year for nursing students. "The award will play a major role in promoting the nursing profession. More students will enroll because by instituting the award, the princess is encouraging Saudi women to become nurses. I also hope that the princess will support the nursing community by forming a society for Saudi nurses in order to solve their difficulties and plan for the future of their profession."
