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Saudi German Hospital ER

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spongemonkey980

4329

Posts

EW MASTER

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 18:30

Let me rephrase my earlier post which was deleted for some reason.... I am surprised that anyone would call any hospital here to get advice about whether or not to go in! These hospitals have masses of ancilliary staff wandering about making the place look good, answering phones, manning desks but really, do they know very much at all? They put a smart outfit on them and their knowledge is usually limited to giving directions as to what floor someplace is on! THAT is the only thing I would rely on them for - certainly NOT any medical advice! :\:

46

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 15:30

mum2girls, thank you! Yep the whole experience was terrible, but that god me and my son are healthy. We paid so much money to them as we didnt have insurance and we expected a lot more from them.... I understand that it is new and may have teething problems, however this is a hospital not a restaurant and you cant make mistakes like they did when it comes to peoples health. I wont be going back there again....

2

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 13:51

I am sorry to hear about your experience. However, I have to say that my experience with the ER at the SG was positive. I have called them yesterday due to the fact that I had chest pains and was getting very anxious. The person who took my call was a philippino who spoke good english, understood my problem and asked me to go in. Once I arrived at the hospital, I was seen straight away by two philippino nurses and a young femal doctor. I have now made an appointment with one of their specialist to have further checks. If I were you, I would write a letter of complaint to the hospital to explain what happened.

1097

Posts

EW OLDHAND

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 11:59

C&C, what a horrendous experience you suffered ! It is absolutely shocking. I hope you can get some form of apology or acknowledgement from them, although it doesn't make up for what you went through. Congratulations on your new baby ! But it does sound like their front desk operations and other areas is seriously lacking !

GirlAnachronism35688

1039

Posts

EW OLDHAND

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 11:56

Thanks for the replies. I agree medical care here is a business but I do think there is an ethical responsibility to patients, and I have received excellent quality medical care here in other hospitals, hence I was surprised. When you are in pain or anxious, they have a duty of care to look after patients and their needs, especially when you pay through the nose for it. The Dr himself was fantastic, so I can't fault them there, but I think as a new hospital they should review how they deal with people / first impressions. You're absolutely right but I guess hospitals here are only as good as their managers push them to be. Maybe it's because it's new...I have read a lot of bad reports so I hope they sort themselves out.

GirlAnachronism35688

1039

Posts

EW OLDHAND

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 11:24

Unfortunately we have to remember that private hospitals here are just businesses like any other, they just happen to deal in medical care. Often it can be of an excellent standard, but the fact is that a lot of hospitals here will have an admin person answering phones, not a nurse, and they will be on low salaries to save on cost so probably not the most highly educated staff in the hospital. For any serious emergencies forget the private hospitals and go straight to Rashid as mentioned below. In the UK yes I would phone NHS Direct if I wasn't sure whether hospital was required, but here I would just go and not bother with the phone. You're too likely to get an admin person on the line, or have no one answer etc. Your husband could have gone on his own in a taxi if you're heavily pregnant and tired etc. Glad he's ok!

46

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:58

I delivered my son at Saudi German Hospital and the whole experience was terrible I have made a complaint to the CEO and am currently waiting a response. I heard that there have been quite a few complaints... I posted my complaint on the pregnancy section to see if anyone else had similar issues with the hospital, here is the link to my post... http://www.expatwoman.com/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=188787

178

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:55

Yes but we are not in the UK, we are in the middle east where there is no NHS, again most doctors would probably advise if you are concerned to visit in person, they can not be held responsible for advice given over the phone (or should not be). I'm not suggesting a doctor be held accountable for advice on the phone. DB was concerned and she wanted to check if that concern was necessary. Yes, we are in the Middle East. Dubai is not some middle of nowhere desert village. A very significant proportion of communication in this city is conducted in English. It isn't unreasonable to expect to call A&E/ER and be able to speak to someone that can communicate effectively in English, without waiting a long time. As with most things, profit almost certainly lies at the bottom of this problem. Edit: I can't spell <theshame> <em>edited by mich72 on 16/09/2012</em>

flydiver1136092

504

Posts

EW GURU

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:51

So sorry you had a bad experience. I hope your DH is on the mend. I took my DS to GS with a temp over 40 degrees at 3am in the morning and could not rave enough about the excellent care and compassion given to us (as distressed parents) by their staff. Having said that two days later I travelled to London and had to be taken to emergency directly from the aircraft with a colleague that fractured her tailbone due to a fall. When ever we approached the reception desk to ask how long it would be, after a very loooong wait in a cold and very worn out waiting room, we were told quite abruptly to take a seat (very difficilt to do on a broken tailbone). We arrived at 10pm and no one paid any attention to us for 8 hours until we saw a doctor who wanted to give her codine. When it was explained that she could not take codine due to UAE regulations we were told 'that's not my problem, what do you want me to do about it'. I guess all over the world there are days you get poor customer service.

2738

Posts

EW EXPERT

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:51

I'm sorry you had a problem but i don't understand your gripe particularly. It's very simple, major emergency get to Rashid via car or ambulance. Other emergencies get in a car to the hospital of your choice. Talking on a phone in a country with so many different cultures and languages dodgy choice and if an emergency how can you expect any medical professional or not to treat or diagnose over a phone line? If you are concerned you go in, same any where. Sniffing medication directly from a bottle unless specified on the instructions is not a great idea, are you cross at your DH or the hospital? I have to disagree - I think a quick phone call to an ER to determine whether a case is serious or not is a good idea rather than trekking down to a hospital 30 mins drive away at midnight, when I am 7 months pregnant. And as for language, I can overlook that people's English is not perfect in a mall, a restaurant or a bank, but in a hospital ER you should be able to be understood quickly, and have a sense of urgency since lives are at stake. No one should be in any patient contact unless they can make themselves understood and can understand basic instructions. And yes, it says on the instructions to inhale from the bottle. I am a native english speaker and i struggle at times with what other native english speakers sometimes say! Yes it was frustrating, yes it was an accident, yes your 7 months pregnant, but at the end of the day you spoke to a doctor and made an informed decision/choice.

5400

Posts

EW MASTER

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:49

Oh god, thank god he is ok. Essential oils indeed are very dangerous and cause a lot ot damage! I must say that I was planning to go and check out the SG Hospital as we live close by as well. I have had a little story myself recently with healthcare in Dubai. And on the long run this will make me very nervous, and we are planning to leave the UAE sooner rather than later.[b'> I have the impression that when you enter a hospital, even if it is ER you could die right then and there, because they need all the paper work done FIRST - then they look at your problem.[/b'> Fair enough if you have a checkup but in an emergency i think it's just wrong. Thanks for your post and all the best to your husband! I am under what may be the mistaken impression that this is common practice in the USA?

2738

Posts

EW EXPERT

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:46

Talking on a phone in a country with so many different cultures and languages dodgy choice and if an emergency [b'>how can you expect any medical professional or not to treat or diagnose over a phone line?[/b'> If you are concerned you go in, same any where. Maybe it is a British concept, but people are encouraged in the UK to do just this. Medical professionals are trained to ask the right questions to get the facts in order to get to the bottom of the problem. Questioning is almost as important as poking, prodding and looking. Ask any doctor. If you are not certain it is an emergency, then by phoning you get (in theory) proper advice. If not an emergency, then not only have you saved yourself time and a trip, but you free up the medical staff to deal with more serious cases. Of course, if you believe it to be an emergency, or are in any doubt, then get yourself to the hospital. Yes but we are not in the UK, we are in the middle east where there is no NHS, again most doctors would probably advise if you are concerned to visit in person, they can not be held responsible for advice given over the phone (or should not be).

2738

Posts

EW EXPERT

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:43

Talking on a phone in a country with so many different cultures and languages dodgy choice and if an emergency how can you expect any medical professional or not to treat or diagnose over a phone line The official language in the UAE is Arabic; and English is a widely used business language. I do not think it is too much to expect that every worker answering a telephone, particularly in a hopsital ER, shoud be completely fluent in either of these 2 languages. I am sure every doctor here is fluent in either English or Arabic, and that should be the case for anyone answering a medical emergency line edited by Arch on 16/09/2012 Even if a hospital employs a full time doctor to answer the phone they still can not make a diagnosis over the telephone, they will always say come in. The OP did get to speak to a doctor in the end. Had the phone been answered in Arabic the language of the country resided there would have been the same if not a greater problem! I am still failing to see this is a major hospital fault, frustrating yes but in the end the client spoke to a doctor. Just because one phone call was frustrating due to a language barrier does not IMHO mean a whole hospital should be deemed a disaster. The person in question should write to the hospital managment about her concerns. JMHO

178

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:41

Talking on a phone in a country with so many different cultures and languages dodgy choice and if an emergency [b'>how can you expect any medical professional or not to treat or diagnose over a phone line?[/b'> If you are concerned you go in, same any where. Maybe it is a British concept, but people are encouraged in the UK to do just this. Medical professionals are trained to ask the right questions to get the facts in order to get to the bottom of the problem. Questioning is almost as important as poking, prodding and looking. Ask any doctor. If you are not certain it is an emergency, then by phoning you get (in theory) proper advice. If not an emergency, then not only have you saved yourself time and a trip, but you free up the medical staff to deal with more serious cases. Of course, if you believe it to be an emergency, or are in any doubt, then get yourself to the hospital.

24

Posts

EW NEWBIE

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:34

Oh god, thank god he is ok. Essential oils indeed are very dangerous and cause a lot ot damage! I must say that I was planning to go and check out the SG Hospital as we live close by as well. I have had a little story myself recently with healthcare in Dubai. And on the long run this will make me very nervous, and we are planning to leave the UAE sooner rather than later. I have the impression that when you enter a hospital, even if it is ER you could die right then and there, because they need all the paper work done FIRST - then they look at your problem. Fair enough if you have a checkup but in an emergency i think it's just wrong. Thanks for your post and all the best to your husband!

993

Posts

EW GURU

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:25

Talking on a phone in a country with so many different cultures and languages dodgy choice and if an emergency how can you expect any medical professional or not to treat or diagnose over a phone line The official language in the UAE is Arabic; and English is a widely used business language. I do not think it is too much to expect that every worker answering a telephone, particularly in a hopsital ER, shoud be completely fluent in either of these 2 languages. I am sure every doctor here is fluent in either English or Arabic, and that should be the case for anyone answering a medical emergency line <em>edited by Arch on 16/09/2012</em>

993

Posts

EW GURU

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:22

I am glad your husband is ok; thats the main thing that matters :) But yes, hospitals should have people with medical awareness in both English and Arabic. Sometime back there were articles going round on how xyz speaks the best English and were thus preferred by employers which is all wrong to say the least; answering scripted questions does not make one excellent in English; one has to understand idioms or native English speakers as well, and in a medical setting, the difference can be very serious.

2738

Posts

EW EXPERT

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:19

I'm sorry you had a problem but i don't understand your gripe particularly. It's very simple, major emergency get to Rashid via car or ambulance. Other emergencies get in a car to the hospital of your choice. Talking on a phone in a country with so many different cultures and languages dodgy choice and if an emergency how can you expect any medical professional or not to treat or diagnose over a phone line? If you are concerned you go in, same any where. Sniffing medication directly from a bottle unless specified on the instructions is not a great idea, are you cross at your DH or the hospital?

1097

Posts

EW OLDHAND

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:04

I have not heard anything good about the place either, maybe it is still experiencing teething problems. What I have heard though is that it is the best equipped hospital in the region, so hopefully they will hire professionals (medical and admin) with the proper expertise to make it a brilliant hospital. You would imagine they could be able to attract top quality staff, if they have invested so heavily in the infrastructure and equipment. Hope your hubby is doing ok now.

3220

Posts

EW MASTER

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 10:02

I agree,defnitely go to the management. Someone could die because of front desk incompetence.

551

Posts

EW GURU

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 09:56

wow. Is he OK now??

5400

Posts

EW MASTER

Latest post on 16 September 2012 - 09:55

Complain directly to the Management of the hospital, explaining it in exactly the way you have here.

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