Many Saudis have made passage to India for medical treatment to escape the wicked prices at private hospitals in the Kingdom, but Masoud Al-Yami was a victim of medical negligence and scam in Bangalore, draining him of SR30,000 and putting his life on the edge of death. But he was saved on Sunday when he underwent corrective surgery at the Military Hospital in Tabuk. When Al-Yami first suffered heart palpitations back in January, he went to Prince Sultan Heart Center in Riyadh for diagnosis through which four of his arteries were found clogged, urging a surgical intervention initially scheduled for May 26. But he wanted a second opinion. He went to a hospital in Amman, Jordan, where he was diagnosed with coronary artery blockage too and was advised to undergo a surgery. When doing his research to find a heart surgeon to perform the surgery, people advised him to go to India for treatment with ‘a self-proclaimed doctor' Ahmad Al-Anssari whose name shined among Saudi and Gulf patients traveling to India for heart treatment. “First, the bogus doctor told me that each of my arteries was clogged at 55% and I would need a 16-day treatment,” Al-Yami said. The treatment started and ended with a cannula inserted into his vein to pump intravenous colored fluids into his body, he said. When the 16-day treatment ended, the ‘doctor' told Al-Yami that the blockage of his arteries went down to 15%, encouraging him to continue the treatment for another week as recommended, Al-Yami said. By the end of the week, the ‘doctor' congratulated Al-Yami and alleged that his arteries were no longer clogged, prescribing three types of vitamin for three months and advising him to stay away from red meat, fat and yogurt. And he asked him to return after six months. After his return from the treatment trip in India, Al-Yami went to the Military Hospital in Tabuk to double check on his heart last Thursday, but to his surprise, he was seriously alerted to his deteriorating blocked arteries; two of them were completely blocked and the other two were 90% blocked. A surgery was promptly scheduled for him last Sunday, which was a success. Dr. Mohammad Sha'lan, cardiologist at the hospital, said that Al-Yami was unfortunately duped into unproven treatment as his condition only deteriorated, encouraging people to do their research before deciding to go abroad and get treatment. Shaye'a, Al-Yami's son who accompanied him to India, said the Indian so-called doctor treated more than 20 people in his one-room clinic with the help of six nurses, working in a primitive and unhealthy situation. – Okaz __
