230,000 mental patients unattended

RIYADH, 20 August — There are more than 230,000 mental patients in the Kingdom who do not receive proper treatment, Al-Madinah reported yesterday quoting Dr. Khaleel Al-Qowaifely, supervisor of Al-Amal Center. “There are about 230,000 mental patients who do not receive treatment at government hospitals,” he told the Arabic daily. “They need special care and treatment,” Qowaifely said. He also disclosed that 25 percent of Saudi society suffer from some psychological problem or other.