JEDDAH, 18 December 2005 — A new recommendation by the Ministry of Health requiring administrators of girls’ schools to get approval from parents in order to authorize the school to act in cases of emergency is causing outrage among administrators and parents alike.
A circular to all girls’ schools from the director general of education in Riyadh included a new recommendation to be added to the regulations concerning a school principal’s authority to contact the relevant agencies such as Civil Defense and Red Crescent directly in cases of emergency, according to Asharq Al-Awsat, a sister publication of Arab News.
The recommendation requires a signed approval from the student’s guardian allowing the school to act in cases of emergency, permitting the girl to leave the school with the Civil Defense and Red Crescent if her life is in danger or to leave with a driver in an emergency.
Neither the School Health Administration at the Girls’ Education in Riyadh or Jeddah has received this new circular. “We have not received anything official,” said Dr. Sonya Malki, head of School Health Administration in Jeddah.
“In case of medical care or emergency, we have to inform the parent but if it’s a case of life and death, the school should take action to transfer the girl to a hospital without waiting,” she said.
The reactions by officials at the School Health Administration, school administrations and parents have been of surprise and outrage at the suggestion. “There is no circular now authorizing the school to act in cases of health emergency. There should be an order authorizing the schools to do so, regardless of the parents’ approval,” a school principal told Arab News.
She pointed to the disastrous fire in a girls’ school in Makkah a few years ago when the girls were prevented from leaving by the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice because none of them were wearing abayas and their male guardians were not present. Fourteen girls died as a result.
“After that incident, procedures were put in place and fire drills were conducted in girls’ schools so that the girls would know how to evacuate the school in case of a fire alarm and without waiting for the Civil Defense or their guardians to arrive,” the principal said.
“How can they suggest getting the parents’ approval before taking action? What if they won’t sign? In an emergency, the administrator would not have time to check files to see if a girl’s parents have given their approval and in an emergency, we can’t waste time calling the parent. The school should have the authority to act because it is responsible for the students while they are in the school even if the parent disapproves,” she said.
One parent said he could understand why this new rule was made. “There are fathers of a certain mentality who might demand that his approval be sought before his daughter was allowed to leave the school, even if it was an emergency, but that should not be an excuse or obstacle to prevent saving a girl’s life,” said Ahmed Ali.
Currently, if a girl does not feel well or needs medical attention, the parent is called to pick her up and if the situation is serious, a doctor from the School Health Administration with an ambulance and nurse is sent to the school to check on the student and decide on further action.
As for cases of suspected domestic abuse, the school is expected to inform the guidance unit and the School Health Administration at the Girls’ Education to investigate the case and write a report which is then forwarded to the municipality for action. If the girl needs medical care, the guidance unit makes the recommendation but the parent’s approval is required to take her to a health care facility.
