AHSA: Patients here have been shocked to see waste piling up inside and outside the Maternity and Children's Hospitals in Al-Ahsa. They accused the hospital's cleaners of failing to do their duty. Doctors and medical staff working at the hospital have warned about a potential environmental disaster. They said the waste was piling up particularly in the evenings and late at night. The cleaners were washing the cars of visitors instead, they claimed. Hussein Al-Rewaily, Director of Health in Ahsa, said he had sent a warning to the cleaning company that severe punitive measures will be taken if the workers do not do their work properly. The directorate insisted on cleanliness at its hospitals, he said. The evening shift director at the hospital, who declined to reveal his name, said the hospital's administration is fully aware of the situation but did not question the cleaners. This is because the cleaners are being paid little and often late. Waste has also been piling up at the staff's housing complex adjacent to the hospital. The foul-smelling waste has become a threat to public health. Okaz/Saudi Gazette reporters visited the hospital and saw the medical waste in many of the streets leading to the hospital.
