The Health Affairs Directorate has opened an investigation into the disappearance of a surgeon working at Al-Barak Hospital who was thought to be responsible for a medical error while operating on an eight-year-old child. Aamir Muhammed Al-Helali, the boy's father, said the errant surgeon had performed an appendectomy on his son, pointing out that his son's health condition deteriorated to such an extent after the operation that the internal medicine specialist at the hospital advised that the boy be moved to another hospital. Hence, Al-Helali lodged a complaint against the surgeon with the hospital's medical director who promised to raise the issue with the director general of the hospital. Two days after making the complaint, one of the hospital staff called Al-Helali at midnight asking him to come immediately as his son's condition had deteriorated further. Al-Helali said that he was told that doctors at Asir General Hospital, who had been consulted, said that performing the appendectomy was wrong since the boy was suffering from a large malignant tumor in his stomach. Al-Helali said the consultants in the hospital had unanimously agreed that the appendectomy had worsened the boy's condition, adding that the oncology surgeon operated on the boy and removed the tumor and that the boy was receiving chemotherapy. He said his son's condition had forced him to apply for early retirement because he needs to drive his son to the hospital every week for chemotherapy sessions. Al-Helali said the doctor's misdiagnosis had harmed his son physically and psychologically, adding “When I returned to Al-Barak, I visited the director of the hospital to enquire about my complaint. You can imagine my surprise when I was told that the Arab surgeon had left for his country. Moreover, the director denied that he had ever received a complaint from me and that he had ever signed any papers for the performance of the operation.” Thus Al-Helali approached officials at the Ministry of Health to look into the case and punish those who were responsible for his son's suffering.
