Relatives of an old patient at Khamis Mushait Hospital, located in the south of the Kingdom, were surprised to discover that hospital workers had given expired juice to patients – and by a number of other problems at the facility. Naif Bin Awwdah, the son of an old hospitalized patient, said he was stunned to learn that the juice, which was part of a special meal for his father to celebrate Eid Al-Fitr, was served after its expiration date. He said he discovered the expired juice and other problems after he came all the way from Riyadh to visit his ailing father. “The negligence in the hospital is not limited to this,” he said. “The old furniture and dirty bed covers stand as conclusive evidence of the inferior standard of services,” he said. It is also common to see toilet floors covered with blood stains, said Awwdah, who described the overall situation in the hospital as very chaotic. “This is happening at a time when the Ministry of Health always talks about the significant improvement in its services,” he said. Awwdah said he reported his concerns to the hospital's managers, but they turned a deaf ear. He called on authorities at the Health Directorate in Khamis Mushait to investigate the problems at the hospital. The hospital's management is talking to the company that provides food and beverages to learn more about the juice issue, according to a source who cast doubt on Awwdah's story as some visitors bring outside juice and beverages to patients.
