JEDDAH, 27 November 2004 — Ambulances usually save lives by racing back to hospitals, but a caravan of emergency vehicles left a hospital Thursday hoping to save lives by sounding the alarm about AIDS.
The health department in Jeddah organized demonstrations to enlighten the public especially young men and women on the danger of AIDS, the killer disease that has already affected more than 1,000 people in the city.
Dr. Abdullatif Al-Idriss, director of health affairs in Jeddah, launched the campaign on Thursday as the demonstration started at King Abdul Aziz Hospital and ended at Hilton on the Corniche after passing through residential districts.
During the demonstration, doctors and specialists explained the danger posed by AIDS or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. Officials also distributed booklets and brochures.
Some 16 ambulances, patrol cars and passport department vehicles took part in the demonstration, which continued its journey up to Obhur yesterday via the camel square before returning to its starting point. Al-Idriss, chairman of the AIDS campaign committee, commended the governors of Makkah and Jeddah for their support.
Officials and doctors from King Abdul Aziz Hospital and Tumor Center, King Fahd Hospital and King Saud Hospital as well as the Traffic police and other government departments took part in the demonstration. “The main objective of the demonstration was to enlighten all sectors of society about the danger of AIDS, because we believe that awareness is the best treatment to confront this malevolent disease,” said Ali Bousi, assistant director of King Abdul Aziz Hospital.
The committee plans to hold lectures and seminars at schools, government departments and jails as part of its effort to educate maximum number of people on the danger posed by AIDS and to inform them of the government’s efforts to combat the disease. Dr. Sana Flimban, director of King Saud Hospital in Jeddah, has estimated the total number of people affected by AIDS in the city at 1,026 including 788 foreigners.
“About 80 percent of the victims are in the 15-49 age group,” she said.
Flimban attributed the spread of AIDS to lack of health awareness. “Dealing with AIDS patients is dangerous but the enormity of the danger differs from one patient to the other,” she pointed out.
