RIYADH — Lack of proper medical services, unavailability of specialist doctors and scarcity of beds had forced the Health Ministry to refer patients in a number of government hospitals to specialist hospitals last week, local daily Al-Watan reported on Monday.
Ministry sources said the government department transferred 4,046 patients. The sources said about 63.8 percent of emergency sections have been converted into specialist hospitals due to the lack of proper medical services in government facilities.
The ministry referred 5.68 percent of patients in government hospitals to other specialist hospitals due to a lack of beds, they said. They said 27.89 percent of the patients were transferred due to a lack of specialized doctors.
The ministry last week closed down nine hospitals, health centers, clinics and other health facilities over various violations in Riyadh.
Seven MERS cases reported last week
In its weekly press release, the Ministry of Health (MOH) announced on Sunday that seven confirmed cases of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-coronavirus (MERS-CoV) have been reported in Riyadh and Hofuf over the period from June 14 to 20.
“During the same period, 911 samples were tested for coronavirus at ministry's laboratories across the Kingdom.
“The rapid response team made four visits to medical facilities for infection prevention and control, while public health teams made seven visits to persons in contact with positive cases,” the ministry's statement said.
The ministry announced that 572 cases out of the total of 1,038 confirmed cases have been cured, at a rate of 55.2%. There are seven other cases still receiving treatment.
The Command and Control Center (CCC) is continuing its epidemiological surveillance tasks, making sure that all governmental and private health facilities are applying infection control measures as well as coordinating with the relevant governmental agencies, international health organizations, including the World Health Organization (WHO), and think-tanks to follow up on all developments regarding coronavirus.
