JEDDAH, 28 July 2005 — More than 20 nurses from Taif have, in a letter to the National Society for Human Rights, indicated their disapproval of the new 10-hour shift that has been introduced in hospitals and health centers. The new shift obliges the nurses to work for 50 hours per week.
Female nurses say the new shift has badly affected their family life. “The new system — which requires us to be on duty from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. — is creating a rift between us and our families,” they told Al-Watan newspaper.
Some nurses have reported that they have been threatened with divorce by their husbands over their long absences from home, family and children.
Moreover, the long hours have caused many nurses to make mistakes and lose their temper with patients. A large number of nurses complained that they are no longer working efficiently due to their anxiety and stress.
“We have no time to rest at all,” said one of the nurse. “It has become harder to work at home after working for around 10 hours with only one-hour break in the afternoon,” she added.
The nurses said the new system would result in the loss of many women workers at hospitals and health centers. They do not believe that the survey conducted by the Ministry of Health in 83 medical centers in Riyadh and Jeddah is correct.
The letter included a request to the minister of health to reconsider the decision.
A representative from the human rights organization in the Western Province said the complaint was being looked into.
