Abdullah Al-Jamili
Al-Madinah newspaper
A few days ago, I attended the Third Saudi Nursing Forum held in Madinah. The forum discussed the situation of the nursing profession in the Kingdom as well as issues faced by both Saudi male and female nurses. The participants also discussed the challenges and obstacles they face in the field.
Here is a summary of what was discussed:
- Negative social perception of the profession still exists today even if it is to a lesser degree. This includes the prevailing belief that nursing is a profession that is not suitable for Saudis in general and young women in particular.
- The poor performance of a minority Saudi male and female nursing staff creates a distorted impression about the capabilities of Saudi nationals in the field.
- Some Saudis entered the profession only to seek a job and not because of their love of it or its sublime humanitarian message. This is evident from the attitudes of some of the Saudi nursing staff who are constantly searching for administrative jobs.
- Lack of proper orientation and training for young men and women from either the government or private nursing institutes.
- Inappropriate working environment in terms of work hours. Long working hours at hospitals in some cases reach up to 21 hours. Both male and female Saudi nurses with family obligations are at a disadvantage.
- A number of hospitals and health centers are located in remote regions and villages where there are no adequate facilities and services such as housing, family accommodation and outlets for recreation. This prompts many nurses to abandon their jobs.
- There are several hospitals that are poorly administered and where there is no proper work environment especially for nurses.
- Saudi society has certain cultural restrictions that prevent many families from sending their girls to practice nursing.
I have highlighted some of the difficulties faced by the Saudi nursing staff and raised at the forum. However, there is a much larger obstacle, which I will talk about in my next column.
