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NEWS: [06-05-2010] - Fast-food-loving Kuwaitis battle the bulge

Submitted by Dreamcatcher on Thu, 06/05/2010 - 7:34pm.

In Kuwait, at family gatherings and social events, food is always at the top of the menu.

Friends meet at restaurants two or three times a week and if you don't want to go out, Western fast food chains like Burger King will deliver tasty, high-fat meals to your front door.

At family occasions, the more opulent the spread the greater the social status conferred. Tables groan under the weight of multi-course banquets laid on by competitive hostesses, often aided by maids.

But, in the oil-rich Gulf state where scorching summers keep people indoors, this appetite for excess is taking its toll. Kuwait is one of the fattest nations on earth -- and it is affecting people's health.

Just over 74 percent of the population is overweight, according to the World Health Organization (WHO) and this "obesity epidemic" is contributing to a rise in heart disease and diabetes.

WHO says around 14% of Kuwaitis currently suffer from diabetes and it is on the rise.

"[Being] overweight and obesity have been gradually increasing for the past 15 years," Nawal Al Hamad, Head of Nutrition at Kuwait's Ministry of Health, told CNN.

The underlying causes are complex, but an abundance of food and sedentary lifestyles are major factors, according to Hamad.

"In Kuwait incomes are good, food is available and not very expensive, and most importantly people don't move a lot," she said.

"Our homes are equipped with the usual advanced technology devices, in addition to the fact that we have helpers at home; even people who are unemployed usually have at least one or two helpers at home," she added.

Kuwait's per-capita wealth is one of the highest in the world, while over half the labor force is made up of non-Kuwaitis, according to the CIA World Factbook.

Sami Al Bader is head nutritionist at Gethealthykuwait.com (GHK), a private initiative aimed at helping Kuwaitis to lose weight.

NEWS: [01-03-2010] - MoH eyes strict penalties for insults to medical staff

Submitted by Dreamcatcher on Tue, 02/03/2010 - 4:05pm.

The Ministry of Health (MoH), in cooperation with Kuwait Medical Society (KMS), is preparing a draft law that calls for strict penalties against those who insult medical staff and grants doctors immunity against inspections and ordinary security procedures, says Manager of Legal Affairs Department at MoH Dr Ibrahim Al-Abdulhadi.

The ministry will submit the final draft to the Fatwa and Legislation Department, then to the Cabinet and finally to the Parliament for ratification. “The process is expected to be completed in nearly six months,” noted Al-Abdulhadi.

Moreover, the committee for redrafting Psychiatry Law, which is chaired by Al-Abdulhadi, will hold its second meeting by the end of this week to discuss various recommendations and review experiments of other countries.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry has invited 32 international consultants of different medical specializations to come to Kuwait this month.

The ministry’s Director of Public Relations, Faisal Al-Doseri, said in a press release on Monday that the aim of the visit would be to improve health services in the country and to expose Kuwaiti doctors to different experiences.

Specialties include cancer, stem-cell research, ophthalmology, laboratory testing, osteology and joints, plastic surgery, nuclear medicine, pediatrics, and cancer therapy.

He noted that the doctors would be performing complicated surgeries and training doctors, as well as delivering workshops, diagnosis patients, and giving medical consultations.

Al-Doseri noted that previous visits of international consultants had helped keep Kuwaiti doctors up to date in their respective fields.

NEWS: [14-11-2009] - Kuwaiti PM to attend signing of Sheikh Jaber Hospital project

Submitted by Dreamcatcher on Sat, 21/11/2009 - 3:34pm.

His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah will be attending Sunday the signing ceremony for the construction of the Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Hospital.

The deal would be signed by Minister of Labor and Minister of State for Municipal Affairs Dr. Fadhel Safar.

When its' finished, the Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Hospital will be the biggest medical center in Kuwait, providing health services to nearly 600,000 residents of South Surra and nearby areas.

On an area of 469,370 square-meters, the new hospital would provide high-tech medical services for patients and visitors.

Recreational areas will be linked to the hospital's main building to provide a joyful atmosphere for people. The soon to be Kuwaiti landmark, will have a parking-lot with a capacity around 4,500 vehicles with its design mainly focused on providing smooth traffic for those seeking or departing from the hospital.

Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad hospital's location was picked to allow people to easily reach the facility which will consist of around 1,168 beds.

The building will be nine stories high and will have a basement level with each level having its unique decoration.

The levels are divided in wards that will provide topnotch medical services in accordance to the special branches of medicine. Other than providing medical services, the hospital would act as a venue for medical events and conference with its 300 seats auditorium.

The labor ministry reintroduced the Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad tender to seize the opportunity of the low cost in building materials, bringing the total cost of the project to around KD 303 million after it was estimated at KD 319 million.

The Arab contractors company won the tender and will commence construction as soon as the deal is signed

كويتي يُنقذ ركاب طائرة كندية من مختلّ أثار الذعر وضرب المضيفات

Submitted by saffaa7 on Tue, 18/08/2009 - 8:55pm.

كتب محمد المصلح القبس:
على طريقة افلام الرعب، اقدم امس شخص بحال غير طبيعية على اثارة الذعر وسط ركاب طائرة كندية كانت في طريقها من كندا الى الكويت مرورا بلندن، ثم هدّد قائدها بارتكاب عمل جنوني قد يصل الى تفجير الطائرة، الا ان مواطنا كويتيا كان على متنها تصدى له بشجاعة وتمكن من السيطرة عليه.
ضيدان الشمري طالب الطب في جامعة ليستر والعائد من رحلة الرعب روى لــ«القبس» تفاصيل ما حدث عندما كان على متن طائرة الخطوط الجوية الكندية في الرحلة رقم 860 المتجهة الى لندن (ترانزيت) برفقة والدته بعد زيارتهما احد اقربائهما في احد المستشفيات الكندية.
ضيدان الذي ساعدته بنيته الرياضية على السيطرة على الشخص الموتور بدأ حديثه لــ«القبس» عبر الهاتف بالقول «كنت في احد المستشفيات الكندية برفقة والدتي لزيارة احد اقربائنا، حيث قضينا قرابة الاسبوعين واتجهنا بعدها الى مطار مدينة هيفلكس الدولي ومنه الى مدينة هيرثوا في لندن. وبعد الترانزيت كنا سنعود الى الكويت».

NEWS: [15-05-2009] - Problems facing healthcare sector in Kuwait - Part III: Doctors

Submitted by Dreamcatcher on Fri, 15/05/2009 - 12:57pm.

In the early hours of the morning, most Polyclinics in Kuwait are packed with patients, all waiting for an answer to their health concerns. And the only people who could help them are the doctors.

Medical care may stand on the shoulder of nurses, but doctors provide the care and carry the burden of any flaw in the health system. Those who answer the questions, diagnose the problem and try their best to relieve any pain, think the problem sometimes lies in miscommunication.

"There is no adequate health education; the expectations of doctors are wrong," said Dr Ebi Dambo who has been working in the industrial medical field for almost 13 years. He also noted that patients flood the hospitals on a daily basis with various minor problems thinking that at hospitals "they will get better treatments than polyclinics."

In a recently published article, Dambo noted that the clinics are not as bad as we might believe. "One can get the best out of them if there is a good understanding of their capabilities and limitations as well as relating properly with the health staff, especially those attending to you."

What patients don't realize, however, is that the health care system in Kuwait is designed in such a way all health issues start at major clinics and move on from there; "Doctors could refer you to the hospital or to a specialist clinic" depending on the case at hand."

Dambo admits that there might be a problem especially in terms of language barriers. In his article, he writes about misdiagnosis by a doctor due to misunderstanding the patient.

"Sometimes it is difficult to communicate with someone when you don't speak their language, but there should be translators so the doctor could understand what is wrong with the patient," one women said noting that perhaps the misdiagnosis for her maid was due to the doctor not understating "what was wrong with her".

NEWS: [15-05-2009] - Problems facing healthcare sector in Kuwait - Part II: Nurses

Submitted by Dreamcatcher on Fri, 15/05/2009 - 12:55pm.

Medical care stands on the shoulders of nurses," said one patient who receives monthly check-ups at a Kuwaiti public hospital. "They take care of everybody, so it seems.

However, nurses face problems and rarely are they heard when voicing their concerns about their own issues. From unfair salary rankings to understaffing, nurses in Kuwait feel frustrated and aggrieved by a system which does not listen to their concerns and does not respond to their needs. Shortages, overwork and unequal pay can lead to resentment and low morale at hospitals. This in turn undermines the quality of medical care patients receive.

Patients waiting outside their doctor's office have one thing to say about those who assist them: there's a shortage of nurses. "You go in a hospital and see two to three nurses in the morning and they are met by 30 or more patients," a Kuwaiti patient said.

One nurse, who has been working in the medical field for 37 years, agrees with such claims. "Whenever I submit a vacation request, they turn me down saying there won't be enough staff left if I take some time-off," said Noha, who would not give her real name. That, in turn, creates a burden on the medical system itself since nurses are 'overworked.'

Noha notes that the Ministry of Health offers 45 days for nurses as vacation time including the holidays but under her contract she receives 30 days. "Exclude holidays from those 30 days and I'm left with 25...I can't even take these days off since there is a shortage of required staff nurses.

This problem has been fairly addressed according to a retired Lebanese nurse. "There is no pressure at work anymore since they made people go to their assigned district hospitals requiring their civil ID," Mary said. She has worked in the medical field for over 15 years.

NEWS: [15-05-2009] - Problems facing healthcare sector in Kuwait - Part I: Patients

Submitted by Dreamcatcher on Fri, 15/05/2009 - 12:52pm.

"In my opinion, you should just forget about the pain," was one doctor's advice to a woman suffering from inner ear syndrome. To many, that advice would seem a bit odd, especially considering it came from a doctor. But stories about patients being misdiagnosed, mistreated or hardly treated in Kuwait are commonplace.

People tend to put their trust in doctors and expect solutions through their advice, which they usually expect to be professionally sound recommendations. However, what some patients are discovering is that some advice from doctors is far from sound, jeopardizing the trust that is supposed to be present in doctor-patient relationships.

Um Rashid, who has been living in Kuwait for more than 20 years, has had many bad experiences with doctors, especially when it concerned diagnosing her daughter. "My daughter had some problems with her eyes, allergies mainly. A doctor in Fahaheel gave her Cortisone treatment for three years straight, and she started having really bad side effects like weight gain and joint pains," said Um Rashid. After the side effects became a problem, she decided to take her daughter to a private doctor.

"It turns out the type of medication the doctor recommended should only have been prescribed for no more than a month!" said Um Rashid, with an expression of awe on her face. She added that her daughter's eyes were now more sensitive and allergy-prone and furiously asked, "Whose fault is that?

Another Kuwaiti resident was surprised at the kind of treatment given to lower class residents. "My Sri Lankan maid had sharp pains in her stomach that were so intense she sometimes fainted. I took her to many doctors who just gave her medications for six months," said Huda. She later asked doctors to do some x-rays on her maid. "But they refused and said it was no big deal," she said.

NEWS: [21-03-2009] - Does Kuwait need a political revamp?

Submitted by Dreamcatcher on Sat, 21/03/2009 - 12:06pm.

If regular elections are a sign of a functioning democracy, politics in Kuwait are in excellent health.

Only 10 months after the last parliamentary elections were held in the oil-rich emirate, Kuwaitis will once again head to the polls, following the decision by the Emir to dissolve parliament.

Since 1991, Kuwaitis have voted six times - in 1992, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2006 and 2008.

Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah's decision this time was taken after a familiar crisis crippled the country's political system.

Opposition MPs were eager to question the prime minister over allegations of government corruption and mishandling of economic policy.

Rather than face questioning, the prime minister handed in his resignation.

As head of state and the country's highest political authority, the Emir stepped in, dissolved parliament and called new elections.

He also addressed the nation and delivered a scathing critique of what he saw as abuse by some MPs of their right to question the prime minister, which led to a "distortion of Kuwaiti freedom and democracy".

Force of tradition

The reason Kuwaitis are being called back to the polls so frequently is that the underlying reason for the crises is never addressed.

The public grilling process, which could lead to a vote of confidence in the prime minister, is seen by many as too humiliating for a member of the ruling family.

Analysts stress that from a legal perspective the MPs, however aggressive in their questioning, are within their constitutional rights.

But the force of tradition and respect for the ruling family stops the process of questioning in its tracks.

Observers speak of two possible solutions to this problem.

The first is installing a "popular government", a term used in Kuwait to describe a cabinet without members of the ruling family.

Supporters say that that would end the sensitivity about holding prime ministers and ministers to account.

NEWS: [16-03-2009] - Kuwaiti government resigns again

Submitted by Dreamcatcher on Sat, 21/03/2009 - 12:03pm.

The resignation of Kuwait's government has been accepted by the ruling emir, according to state television.

Critics of the government say the move is designed to avert questioning of the prime minister in parliament about alleged misuse of funds.

It is the second resignation of the cabinet in six months.

Ruler Emir Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah has asked the government to continue dealing with urgent matters, state television reported.

The government's critics want to question Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad al-Ahmad al-Sabah, a nephew of the emir, over his role in a range of issues, including claims that he mismanaged ministries and misused public money.

Sheikh Nasser has been under constant political pressure ever since he became prime minister in February, 2006.

He has been forced to resign four times and reshuffle his cabinets on two other occasions.

The most recent of his five cabinets was appointed in January.

No prime minister in the Gulf state has ever allowed themselves to be questioned.

Under Kuwaiti law, the emir had the power to accept or reject the resignation.

NEWS: [26-02-2009] - Historic Kuwaiti visit to Baghdad

Submitted by Dreamcatcher on Fri, 27/02/2009 - 12:17am.

Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed al-Sabah and Hoshyar Zebari

Kuwait's foreign minister has flown to Iraq for the highest-level visit since Iraq's armed forces invaded its southern neighbour in 1990.

Sheikh Muhammad al-Sabah, who is also Kuwait's deputy prime minister, met Iraq's PM and other top officials.

They discussed joint oilfields, maritime borders and war reparations, exactly 19 years after Iraqi forces were expelled from Kuwait.

Iraqi officials said it was "illogical" to continue paying Kuwait compensation.

Many countries have written off their debts to help Iraq get back on its feet since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein by a US-led invasion in 2003.

However Kuwait, which has so far received $13.3bn in compensation from Iraq, is holding out for more. Iraq currently pays 5% of its oil revenues as compensation to Kuwait.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said the Kuwaiti parliament, and not their government, shown to decide on the matter.

On Wednesday night, Kuwait celebrated its liberation for the first time at a banquet in their Baghdad embassy.

Kuwait's first ambassador to Iraq since the 1990-91 war, Ali al-Momen, said: "It means a great deal to me, to my people, to my leadership, having this celebration on this land."

"We have a great task ahead of us and we will work very hard," he added.

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani visited Kuwait in January for an Arab economic summit.