Hospital returns body after getting pledge
JEDDAH. September 14. KAZINFORM The National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) in the Makkah region is taking up the case of an expatriate whose daughter died of swine flu in a private hospital, Kazinform refers to Arab News.
The expatriate alleges that he had to sign a pledge that he would pay SR600,000 before he could receive his daughter's body. The girl was buried last Thursday.
The general supervisor of the NSHR in Makkah Hussein Al-Sharif said that the hospital kept the body of the girl, refusing to turn it over to the father for burial until he paid SR600,000 which was the cost of her treatment. The father, who did not have that amount, signed a pledge to provide the money within two months. "The behavior of the private hospital totally violates the directives of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to the effect that both public and private hospitals must provide treatment and give medical care to H1N1 patients at the expense of the government."
The father said he had obtained the approval of the health affairs department in Jeddah to treat his daughter at that private hospital, Kazinform cites Arab News. See www.arabnews.com for full version.