RIYADH, 7 December 2004 — Saudi Arabia is working to improve its curative facilities for patients suffering from mental disorders and addiction-afflicted syndrome.
This was revealed yesterday by Dr. Yousef ibn Ibrahim Abdulghani, director general for mental and social health at the Ministry of Health here. Between 400 and 500 people kill themselves in a year in Saudi Arabia, mainly because of psychological problems and some 450,000 people seek admission to the ministry’s hospitals for treating psychological problems including depression, paranoia and psychosomatic illnesses.
In his inaugural address at a symposium hosted by King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital (KKESH) yesterday, Dr. Abdulghani spoke about the role of social workers in Saudi society. The symposium was addressed by Dr. Ali ibn Abdullah Al-Rajhi, KKESH supervisor; Dr. Abdullah Al-Jasser, general education manager, Professor A. Al-Dakheel of King Saud University (KSU), Dr. Ferial Kurdi, director of social services, Samia Abdel Monem Rizk, assistant administrator for nursing services, and Dr. Humoud F. Al-Qashan, a counselor and therapist at Kuwait’s Amir House.
Referring to the government’s new initiative for improving services for mental and addiction-afflicted patients, Dr. Abdulghani said “the four-year plan is divided into four segments with the first segment designed to focus on curative services. The second segment is to improve rehabilitation facilities, whereas the third one is to improve preventive measures for mental disorders. And the fourth segment is to improve the concerned departments at the ministry itself”.
He pointed out that Al-Amal Hospital in Riyadh is well-equipped for treating patients suffering from drug-related disorders. The hospital has 503 beds while Al-Amal hospitals in Jeddah and Dammam has 280 beds each. The Kingdom has 14 small and large mental hospitals. “Besides, we are also looking forward to enhancing social services in general hospitals,” said Dr. Abdulghani.
“There is also a plan to set up a training center for social workers at King Saud University next year. This will be the first of its kind in the region”, said Dr. Al-Dakhil who made a presentation on the code of ethics for social workers.
Dr. Al-Dakhil, however, lamented that Saudi Arabia is probably the only country in the world, where the Ministry of Education is not allowing social workers to render their services in schools.
Dr. Al-Rajhi said KKESH, the largest eye care hospital of the Middle East, is now open to private patients, Saudis and expatriates alike, who are required to pay reasonable fees for diagnosis and treatment.
