Hussain Hazzazi Okaz/Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — Around 4,000 thousand AIDS patients do not know where they will get medical treatment after Jeddah Health Affairs said it would shut down King Saud Hospital (KSH) within a fortnight, medical sources told Okaz/Saudi Gazette. The patients' records have not been registered electronically and the patients do not know where these files will end up. Some of the patients remain hospitalized despite the fact that hospital will be closed down soon. Expatriate HIV patients are to be deported as authorities are working on finalizing deportation procedures, the sources said. Although KSH contacted all government hospitals in Jeddah to take in the patients and allow them to follow up at these facilities, all hospitals said they did not have enough facilities such as isolation rooms and asked the hospital to contact the directorate. The KSH administration stressed that the conditions of some patients are dangerous, especially those hospitalized, and certain medical procedures should be taken to prevent any complications, according to the sources. How the directorate will handle this situation and deal with the 4,000 patients is still unclear. Also, nobody knows what would happen to the newly tested HIV positive cases. As for hospital staff, they had to choose between working for East Jeddah Hospital or the Laboratory and Toxicology Center. Dr. Ahmad Faden, assistant director and chairman of committees in charge of shutting down hospitals at Jeddah Health Affairs, confirmed that KSH would be closed down. He said: “Four technical and administrative committees were formed to finalize the procedures of shutting down this medical institution. “We've transferred all Saudi patients to East Jeddah Hospital while the medical staff and technicians were distributed to several hospitals and primary healthcare centers in the city.” Only non-Saudi patients were left at KSH and they were handed over to police. They are currently being kept in isolated detention rooms and will be deported soon, he said, noting that this was the reason behind the delayed hospital shutdown. Some doctors and medical staff members are still working at the hospital and taking care of patients. However, they will be dispatched to other medical institutions after the closure.
