Lady doctor sues Haia member for misconduct

The Commission for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (Haia) has started investigating allegations that a Haia member harassed and humiliated a woman doctor, Al-Madinah Arabic daily reported. “The investigation committee at the Haia has started a probe into the entire issue. We are awaiting a report from the committee,” a source at the Haia told the newspaper. Noura Al-Musallam, a specialist in bone marrow and neurology at King Fahd University Hospital in AlKhobar, said she had filed a petition with Eastern Province Gov. Prince Muhammad bin Fahd asking him to take action against the culprit. “In the complaint, I explained all the details of the harassment and humiliation I suffered at the hands of the Haia official. The incident happened while I was helping the relative of a patient,” she said. Al-Musallam said she was waiting in front of the gate of one of the hospital clinics for a car to take her home at the end of her shift. “A man stopped his car and asked me for directions to the surgical clinics, saying that his sick mother was waiting for him there,” she said. “All of a sudden, a Haia member arrived and asked me to show my ID. He also asked me to hand my mobile phone over to him without revealing his identity.” Al-Musallam said that she tried her best to explain the situation to him. “But he refused to listen and told me to shut up. So I sought the help of other doctors at the hospital to defuse the embarrassing situation,” she said. She said the Haia member insulted her when she asked him to return her mobile phone, suggesting some sort of illicit relationship between her and the patient’s son. “I made a decision to lodge a complaint with the governor against this humiliation as I am a decent citizen and a doctor serving the community,” she said. “I have been practicing as a specialist doctor for some time and was honored by the university. I cannot bear such inhumane behavior from a member of the Haia, whose officials are supposed to behave in a decent and civilized manner and should at least try to understand the situation before hurting people.” Meanwhile, sources at the university denied reports that it had filed a complaint with the Haia branch with regard to the incident. “The university had lodged a petition with the governorate and it is not our business to take up the matter with the Haia. The doctor was so far not summoned for a hearing on the matter. She will formally file a complaint against the Haia member as she has the right to do so,” once source said, adding that she is working for the hospital, which comes under the jurisdiction of the university.