JEDDAH — The Ministry of Social Affairs suspended its sponsorship of the Jeddah AIDS Society, preventing the organization from providing food or financial support to sufferers. As a result, several patients gathered in front of the society's premises recently demanding food and money. A patient, who also suffered from tuberculosis, slept outside King Saud Hospital. One of those gathered outside said the organization had been sending monthly food aid for patients and their families for years. He said: “They suddenly stopped their service, which was the only thing we were living on. “We don't have jobs and our families need to be fed. “We had to come all the way to the society's office but we found it closed with no employees there.” Jeddah AIDS Society head Mousa Hayazi said the organization was unable to pay its salaries to its staff after the ministry had cut off its financial support. He said: “The ministry underwent bureaucratic delays that led to the cut in financial support to us for months. “The employees could not take this and had to leave. “AIDS patients are our responsibility and we will always provide as much support to them as possible.” The patient with tuberculosis slept outside of King Saud Hospital as the Red Crescent could not find any other hospital that would take him. A source said the patient refused to leave the emergency gate unless someone treated him. “He came from an area near Jeddah with a relative. When he reached King Saud Hospital he found its emergency ward closed. “He just lay down in front of the gate and refused to move. He also said the hospital reported his case to the Red Crescent, asking them to transport him to any hospital where he could get treatment. “The Red Crescent came to take him but they couldn't find any private or public hospital available for an AIDs patient with tuberculosis. So they just left him in front of the closed gate and left.” The source added King Saud Hospital then notified Health Affairs about the patient and the directorate again deployed a team from the Red Crescent to treat him on the spot and take him to King Fahd Hospital. Jeddah Health Affairs' Assistant Director for Treatment Services Ahmad Faden said the directorate had previously announced the closure of the hospital. “All of the patients' files and medical records were transported to the new location, East Jeddah Hospital. King Saud Hospital had 4,000 AIDS patients and they were all transferred to different hospitals so their treatment would not be impeded.” He added that when the patient when tuberculosis came, the hospital notified him that it had been closed for a while.
