Corruption and Negligence of Health Services in the Yemeni Society [Archives:1999/43/Health]

Dr. Abdulwahab Mohammed Alhaj
In every ideal society two important things should be due attention and be prioritized. These two things are education and health. If these two things were being neglected that indicates that society is going down. Hence, I will discuss only the topic of corruption and negligence of health services in our society. Actually, in our society there are many serious health problems, and these problems do not have limited to be stopped, and we do not know exactly who is responsible for this corruption and negligence even the government itself says like that, especially in the weekly TV. program, who is responsible ? and to give my concentration to the important places where the corruption and negligence take place. These places are the following:
1- Hospitals:
a. Public Hospitals:-
As we know that the public hospitals services became very neglected, in supply of medicines, instruments which to be used in the hospitals. From the side of medicine, there is very shortage even the simple medicine you can not get it easily in the first aid department and there is shortage of labs instruments. So, there is lack of doing different tests and analysis in these hospitals. Although, all of these problems do no mean that there is no supply of medicine, instruments and etc. of the Ministry of Health that is impossible, but the main reason of the corruption and negligence of these hospitals caused by the bad management. Instead of taking car of their hospitals and patients, they are busy for their business, why ?. This is because there is no control by the Ministry of Health, furthermore, there are many physicians who do their duty in these Public Hospitals are careless in their duty due to the less salary that they get. This salary is not enough for rent. In addition to this, the foreign nurses get salary more than the local physician despite the presence of the Yemeni qualified nurses. Why the Ministry of Health do not pay attention to this matter ? . I think that there is no difficulty to come over this problem. On the other hand, the Ministry of Health has the right to punish those people who do not carry out their duty.
b. The Private Hospitals:-
These hospitals increase day after day in the presence of corruption decrease the facilities and services in the Public Hospitals. These private hospitals, dispensaries and clinics are not much better to the people than the Public Hospitals. This problem as follows:
(i) These hospitals do not provide their services. Care and facilities to rich or high class of people only. The middle class suffer from this problem.
(ii) Evil of these hospitals is that in spite of the high cost, they do not provide the best attention and care to their visitors as comparison to the money that they can get from their patients.
2- Drugs:
Drug is a service, not a goods which can be bought in market. This is a slogan in every ideal society where they have respecting for human right and presence of mercy and sympathy between the people are available. Unfortunately, we missed these ideal means. How can we know that we are facing serious problem due to launching large amount of drug, either good or bad to market for the trading purpose, not for serving society. This is due to the policy of the opining of the local markets, and smuggling. If the government does not change this policy by studying good policy which should be suitable to the needs of the society. The damage of this phenomenon will spread to destroy many things in our life, health, economic, behaviors and etc. So, the opinion is concluded to be that the problem of drugs lies on the Ministry of Health. It should make conditions and rules to chose the best of these different products which is good in quality and suitable in price for whole society classes and there should be limited amount for every type of drug.
3- Health campaign:
It is rarely to see presence of health campaign for providing information to the public unless if there is a disaster or spreading of some fatal disease in the society, but in every society these campaigns should be done continuously. They should provide information to those who work in health sector as physicians, pharmacists, assistants and nurses, and to families schools, industrials, companies, universities, villages and to all public in everywhere by the suitable sources. This is also can be through advertising via TV., Radio, Conferences, Lecture etc. and also the physicians should be familiar with patients. The person who manages or works in a pharmacy or drug stores should be either a pharmacist has a bachelor certificate or a person has diploma in pharmacy or and field has relation to medicine. Only those people who should work I the pharmacy in order to clarify any thing wrong with the patients.
For the physicians, it is better for them to change their dealing with the patients why ? because now days it is rarely to meet patient comes out with satisfaction from the private clinic or hospital, why ? because the patient comes out with loosing much money most of the time without any benefit. So, the physician should meet the patient with smile and mercy, not to meet harry with looking only for the money which they can get from the patient. Some physicians do impose with their patients to do many tests and analysis in one time. Although, some time no need for doing all these tests and analysis.
I do not know what happened to our society! even to many educated people. Those people have lost behavior, mercy and sympathy. There is no respect to human right and increasing the tough and conducting between the people.
We, Yemeni people whom we got the honor certificate from prophet Mohammed ( all prays upon him), due to our sympathy and kind hearts. We have to change ourselves by dealing with each other kindly. If we do not do this, we will cause corruption, poverty and misery I all cases. Let us try doing the right thing amongst people. We have to withstand this tough life in our society and we should work hard and be optimistic till rising of dawn and rise of good future as our religion taught us.

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