Interview Notes

Interviewee: Dr. Kholoud Mugharbel from Saudi Ministry of Health

General Rules of Ethics

- Each physician has their own privilege of things they’re allowed to do
- Every doctor must have the consent of adult patient or legal guardian before taking a
decision.
- Anyone under 18 or anyone deemed too old to make sound decision is assigned a legal
guardian.
- In difficult cases there are committees that decide the patient’s best interest and consult
the patient and their family members.

What happens in case of malpractice?

- Patient or guardians has the right to complain to ‫“ المخالفات' الطبية‬medical error committee”
under the ministry of health and ministry of justice.
- Physicians, consultants and legal judges study the case and send it to another
committee who is within that field to evaluate the case
- If its common error, then they check if the patient consented to it
- If it is malpractice, then the physician is at fault, and they pay a compensation according
to the percentage of fault (and level or harm) after recovery period to evaluate
permanent damage.
- Judge decides the amount to be paid