Several Saudi nurses are opting for a 9-5 office work or teaching profession because of what they claim as “unfair attitude” of the society toward their noble profession. “The unfair attitude toward the nature of our job has killed our ambitions and has forced us to take our steps back and opt for office work and teaching,” said Ala Al-Khumri, a nurse. Endorsing Al-Khumri's views, several nurses are fighting the social stigma attached to their profession. Al-Khumri also resents some people doubting Saudi nurses' qualification and abilities. Some patients and their families regard Saudis as inferior compared to the foreigners working in hospitals here, another nurse only identified as Dareen said. “They don't hesitate in insulting and verbally abusing us. They ignore the fact that we're part of a medical cadre and have a fundamental role in providing health services,” she said. Asma Al-Warslani, head of the nursing staff in a medical center in Jeddah, is of the view that Saudi nurses were second to none as far as their professional abilities are concerned. “Moreover, the negative attitude of the society toward nurses is slowly changing and now it is possible for them to travel abroad to pursue higher studies,” she said. Mariyam Shuaib, head of the nursing staff at Jeddah's Eye Hospital, has other views on the subject. She said several Saudi nurses fail to properly understand the nature of their work and most often than not they are absent when their turn for the night shift comes. “Long working hours also make them frequently getting absent,” she said. Fatima, a teacher at King Abdulaziz University's Nursing Faculty, says long working hours appear more as a problem when the nurses gets married, “which is why nurses do not stay in the nursing field for more than three years. After that they start looking for an office job with less working hours.” This, she said, represents a hurdle in the way of nationalization of the nursing profession. She said she herself suffered the problem and found the solution in obtaining a master's degree and teaching in the faculty. “Although graduates of nursing are in great demand, the society's viewpoint must change and focus should be on the humane aspect of the profession.” Dr. Sabah Abu Znadah, the head of the Nursing Scientific Council at Saudi Board for Health Specialties, holds the media responsible for the negative attitude of some society members who deem nursing as a job that does not require much qualification. This misunderstanding, she said, affects parents of nursing students who eventually won't allow their daughters to work as nurses despite the urgent market needs. “Although the situation has improved a little and hundreds are graduating every year, they are less than what is required,” she said. Abu Znada hopes for the creation of academic and practical programs to study and tackle the social problems being faced by the nurses to ensure that they do not quit the field. The solutions, she thinks, include providing care sections for nurses' children and treating them equally with male nurses in terms of salary raises and other perks.
