Bandar Maqboul, a quadriplegic (paralysis of the legs and lower body typically caused by spinal injury or disease) patient at Jizan General Hospital, is exasperated by what he said has been a nine-month wait to be transferred to a hospital that has the facilities and specialists to treat him. Maqboul expressed astonishment at the procrastination in transferring him to King Fahd Medical City in Riyadh for follow-up treatment and said there is no medical or humanitarian reason for the delay. Maqboul has lodged several complaints with the government authorities calling for his transfer to a specialist hospital. He also said treatment in Riyadh would also make it easier for his family, which lives in the Riyadh area, to visit him, he said. Interestingly, Jibreel Al-Qabbi, spokesman of Jizan Health Administration told Okaz/Saudi Gazette, this case has been rejected by King Fahd Medical City because they said there is no treatment for his case and he needs to be cared for at home. Al-Qabbi said the emir of the region will see a report about the matter. Maqboul, who was injured in a traffic accident, told Okaz/Saudi Gazette that King Fahd Hospital had ignored its responsibility and transferred him to Jizan General Hospital, despite its lack of a neurology department. As a result of that decision, he said he has not received the required care from specialists. Maqboul said higher authorities have issued an order that calls for him to be transferred to the Riydah hospital to undergo medical tests and receive the appropriate treatment. Maqboul said Jizan Hospital issued a medical report saying he needs clinical treatment because several of his vertebrae were damaged, which resulted in his being paralyzed, though he still has feeling in his feet, which reflects that he needs follow-up treatment in a neurology department as soon as possible.
