Health Minister affirms commitment to rules of overseas medical treatment
Minister of Health Dr Ali Al-Obaidi said the decisions on overseas medical treatment are bound to specific technical criterions and fall in the framework of a practical system. “Such decisions are made without interferences by a minister. I have decided to refer a number of medical offices to prosecution over reported irregularities in this regard,” he said.
The minister made the comments in an interview with ‘Ommah 2016’ program on AlRai TV station on Friday night. The overseas medical treatment is one of a range of services being offered by the Ministry of Health since the ministry was founded long years ago, he said. “Under this system, a patient can file a report on his/her medical condition to a four-member consultant committee who can decide on the need of overseas treatment. Their decision should be approved by director of the relevant hospital and then be tabled to undersecretary of the ministry for final endorsement,” he explained.
Dr Obaidi affirmed that the office of the minister has nothing to do with such applications. He noted that all decisions made by the competent committees in the recent period were correct and away from any exceptions or nepotism.
“There are 55 such technical committees with a total 275 consultants in hospitals across the country who are known for their integrity and sincerity and serve our fellow citizens pursuant to the provisions of the constitution,” he went on. He noted that the doubts cast by some parliamentary hopefuls targeted certain members of such committee not the minister.
He added that the cost of overseas treatment amounted to KD 760 million, noting that the number of Kuwaiti patients being treated abroad topped 2,314, including 1,193 patients in the United States, 462 in the United Kingdom, 370 in Germany and 289 in France. —KUNA
Ilove the Salwa area of Kuwait. It is a great location, close to the city, to shopping in Salmiya, family-friendly and accessible to all services. But there has been a growing rate of crime in the area and more attention needs to be paid to all that goes on there.
Hardly a day passes without the news of a murder, armed robbery, theft or trafficking in drugs and other crimes taking place. Some may claim that it is normal in modern societies. I don’t think so because we are a small country and crimes, especially murders, are not something we should accept and simply get used to happening. Salwa was under the microscope this month for a massive increase in crime including cases of murder, drugs, domestic violence, theft, robbery, attacks on vehicles and much more. In one case, a 45-year-old citizen killed his 35-year-old wife, in front of her children, attacking her with a screwdriver and a hammer. The police arrested the man but the impact of this awful crime on the children will never disappear.
A week later another crime has set Salwa residents on edge. Three people were found dead including a member of the ruling family. All three had been tied up and gagged and then shot execution style. Everyone has begun to wonder why and worry over his family and personal safety.
Police acted fast and caught two suspects, two Iranians (it was originally reported that one was bedoon, but the Interior Ministry has confirmed the nationalities in its official statement to the press). According to the statement, the two men, one of whom was the cook for the sheikh, killed the three to steal KD 276,000. They planned to flee once the deed was done. Now they have been caught, and five lives were lost. But for the rest of people living in Salwa, the fear remains. The police and residents will need to work together to reverse the rising crime rate in Salwa and protect its good reputation.
I think that the overall prevalence of violence in the Arab world and the scene of terrorist groups like IS and other terrorist groups that spread in Syria and Iraq have a significant effect on the perpetrators of crimes because they do not feel remorse or hesitate to murder. The high number of crimes have a negative impact on social relations between individuals and spread of fear and anxiety. The Interior Ministry is doing its job now to uncover the causes of crime, but it is necessary to reconsider the reasons to eliminate the number of such crimes. What could be the reason for such crimes in this area? If there is a tip to all here, please make sure to lock all doors and windows at night and never leave any valuables such as credit cards or cash in your car for any reason . Don’t be a prey to theft or criminals.