New hospital standards, which are set to be enforced soon, could render Salmaniya Medical Complex (SMC) obsolete unless it undergoes drastic change, it was declared on Wednesday.

'The SMC is wholly inadequate if it is compared to the hospital with the highest standards in the world,' said Health Ministry Licensure Directorate head Dr Tawfeeq Naseeb, according to our sister publication, the Gulf Daily News.

'In addition, some of the laws under which the medical system functions in Bahrain are outdated and obsolete and need to be more current and modern.'

The new standards, now under preparation, will first be implemented at the SMC, said Dr Naseeb.

'Bahrain's only premier government hospital could face a major revamp when that happens,' he told a Press conference at the ministry headquarters in Salmaniya.

'From a lack of self-opening doors, to the kind of furnishings and floorings used in several hospital areas, everything would have to be possibly revamped.'

Dr Naseeb said the new standards would largely improve on the existing ones but would, in many cases, be new.

'The way the hospital is designed, to the way it is run and administered, all points will be covered under the new standards,' said Dr Naseeb.

He said the standards would be implemented at the SMC as a pilot programme and then in all of Bahrain's hospitals - both public and private. 'The idea is to ensure complete patient satisfaction and top quality service, conforming to international standards,' said Dr Naseeb.

He said the standards were being readied after studying thoroughly those in place in the US, the UK, Australia and Singapore, among others.

'Another major component of the standards will be suggesting and recommending what new laws to bring about and to modify the existing laws to suit modern needs,' said Dr Naseeb.

Also on the cards is a new independent regulatory authority, which would look at all patient complaints from all of Bahrain's hospitals and recommend appropriate action.

'There are charges of favouritism and allegations that there is nothing like a fair investigation in cases of medical negligence,' he said.

'There are also instances when the government bodies have been blamed for not doing enough to licence new medical facilities and professionals who wish to come to Bahrain to work.'

He said the new body, now only awaiting Shura Council approval, should be up and running in the next few months.

'Meanwhile, we have tied up with a private company, Integra Screen, which has been authorised to get the antecedents of all those applying for work in anything related to health, verified,' said Dr Naseeb.

'All private medical facilities can get the required approvals though this agency and submit the applications to us for final approval and we shall process the papers.

'This would considerably reduce the time from which someone applies for a job in Bahrain and actually gets to work here.'

SMC patient complaint office head Dr Jenan Khalaf said all complaints were handled in a professional way.

'We encourage people to complain to the appropriate authorities and not to the Press. We will take action in all cases,' she said.

Of the 92 complaints received by her office last year, 66 were against government hospitals, including the SMC, said Dr Khalaf.

'Forty-seven have already been dealt with and 11 of them have been found to regarding medical errors. Warning letters and several days' suspension have been over as punishment to those found guilty.'

She denied allegations of unfair inquiries and said people independent of the Health Ministry conducted such inquiries.

'The new proposed system will help eliminate these allegations as well,' said Dr Khalaf

She said this year, so far, 66 complaints had been received, of which 44 were against government hospitals.

'Some of them have been disposed of already,' said Dr Khalaf.

She said any complaint takes between eight to 40 weeks to be disposed of.

Assistant registrar for hospitals Dr Shaikha Ahmed, medical licensing head Dr Abdul Aziz Hassan and assistant registrar for clinics Dr Dina Najjar were also present. - TradeArabia News Service