Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Parking Problems at Royal Hospital


      
   If you ever came to any tertiary care  hospital during office hours you most likely have gone through the regular predicament, wasting a lot of time searching for a parking lot to become available. It can be a very frustrating exercise, going around and around in circles trying to get a place to park, and for some they go through this agony almost everyday. MoH do not seem to realize the magnitude of this problem for the patients, visitors and even for the staff at tertiary care hospitals. 

       Undeniably, parking problem has steadily worsened over the years due to many reasons. There is an noticeable growth of motorists during the last few years in Oman. Adding the fifth digits on the plate number is just a clear sign to that. There is an increase in auto sales locally, too, which was estimated to 16% in 2011. According to ROP statistics of 2011, the total number of vehicles on roads is (881360), 10% increase compared to 2010 statistics (804233). But, should that been taken in considerations in the 2020 vision when planning the long-term projects, such as hospitals!?

        Here’s a quote from Royal Hospital website: “The Royal Hospital, established in December 1987, is a large, tertiary, acute-care hospital, which provides state-of-the-art services in the specialties and sub-specialties of medicine, surgery, pediatrics, obstetric & gynecology, oncology and laboratory medicine. It is an important milestone in the development of health services in the Sultanate of Oman during the renaissance programme of the Government of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said in this prosperous period of Oman’s contemporary history.” Such an “important milestone project in the development of health services” designed without forecasting it’s expansion as a response to the population boom and huge increase in the number of vehicles in the upcoming future is a very big mistake. 

       Just a week ago I went to visit a friend of mine at the Royal hospital, yet I was almost to retract due to the plenty advices and complains I got regarding the parking problems there. I got there and, like everyone, spent over 35 minutes just searching for a parking lot. The scene was indescribably unorganized. I wasn’t lucky enough to have a big car like those who were able to haul their cars  onto the small unpaved kerb on the sides of the road. Hurried people park haphazardly, leaving their car blocking crosswalks and jutting out from curbs. further congestion caused by the plenty drivers who stop their cars at the main entrance due to severe situations. Obviously everyone have their own reasons and nobody you can blame at that moment. 


        You might be already stressed if you’re going to the hospital for appointment or treatment. You don't need the extra worry of finding a parking place. The problem is aggravated when you come pack and find a parking fine from ROP glued to your car’s front glass. I don’t think that it’s fair at all, and the police must be more understandable especially in such congested places. I remember a woman being fined for failing to find an adequate parking place while attending an appointment for her son with severe heart problems. ‘I know it’s wrong,’ she said. ‘But people have to drive around for half an hour to find a car parking space at the hospital when they have important medical appointments to keep.’

        Many civil engineers have thrown the blame on MoH for ill-planning the main tertiary care hospitals and for failure to expand parking lots for all visitors, patients and staff. MoH has its own problems and cleavages in their planning when building or designing their hospitals as a whole, not only parking spots! Recalling back what happened to AL Nahdha hospital after the torrential rains flooded the hospital, damaging the much of the facility, and cars in the parking area were stacked over each other after they were washed away in the flood last November. Moreover, just few months ago doctors went on strike and Royal Hospital staff held a half-day protest at the hospital’s main entrance calling for more reforms, transparency and an end to corruption in the Ministry of Health (MoH). 

       There is a plan for a huge expansion at the Royal hospital today, and I’ve seen they’ve already started the building in the opposite side of the hospital’s main building, but until now there is no plans for parking floors system. “The new expansion will enhance the ICU, wards (male and female) and pediatric tumor wards, as well as the offices of doctors, co-coordinators and other supportive services” and there is a plan to add nursery and restaurants area. All that is going to be catastrophic if they’re haven’t take parking floors in mind and linking the main building and the new ones with covered air-conditioned corridors, pedestrian tunnels or covered bridges and linking the necessary parking floors of the two building that are not established yet and I’m not sure if they ever will! 



       Sami AL Muharbi, Royal Hospital patient, said: “MoH is all mouth and trousers. They’ve said a plan is set to expand the parking area three years ago. What have been done?! Nothing at all yet! If the MoH is very aware of the problem but cannot provide any quick action then definitely we’re at a loose end. 

       Ismail Al Barghothi, frequent visitor, said: “It’s really becoming a pain in the neck for me, wasting one hour searching everyday twice for a parking slot nearby. I really want the MoH minister to come here for treatment and park his car somewhere here not in the VIP parking. They’ll never understand our feelings until they walk on our shoes.” 

       Ibrahim Al Amri, patient, indicates that “ Even when they provide parking places, they’re mostly not covered, depriving the patients and visitors of the right to a cool car seat after visiting the hospital”. This is another issue where we live as the temperature is always high. “Hospitals in Oman do not consider special cases like the elderly or the handicapped who find it difficult to walk such a great distance to the office in the scorching heat” he added. 


        Solutions are essential to be carried quickly in order to avoid further problems. It is important to utilize the large area near the hospital in designing new building with parking floors system so that it is sufficient to cope with the hospital’s capacity and for any future expansions. The new projects and expansion carried at the Royal hospital must put in plan the parking floors suggestion and linking the main building with the new ones and the MoH should shoulder the responsibility regarding the well-designing of the new projects and to take these plans into consideration. All new public hospitals should be forced to provide ample “covered” parking places for their visitors.  Not to forget also the medial city project to be established, but when is it going to see the light?! I hope It’ll be very soon because it will definitely lessen the pressure and congestion in the other tertiary care hospitals in Muscat.

        It’s time to take the bull by the horns and begin implementing real solutions, or else it will be much more expensive later on to tackle this problem.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

History of Mass communication in Oman: Al Nizar village

Mass communication is the term used to describe the academic study of the various means by which individuals and entities relay information through mass media to large segments of the population at the same time. It is usually understood to relate to newspaper and magazine publishing, radio, television and film, as these are used both for disseminating news and for advertising.

 Although communication technology has altered our way of life and brought about changes in various aspects in Omani society, it critically important to refer to the history of communication and mass communication development in Oman.  The past always helps new generations understand who they are and how they should relate to each other, so do communication!



* Note: This film was produced with a collaborative work of my team of 2006 batch (International Communciation students at Nizwa College of Applied Sciences). 

Friday, April 13, 2012

Strict anti-littering laws needed

Many tourist spots in Oman are of late being spoilt at the hands of empty-headed tourists who are completely inconsiderate about the result of their actions.


Just a week ago, when it was raining in the Northern part of the country, the good weather lured me to drive around some breathtaking spots near my town, Wadi al Khoudh. But I was disappointed to find diapers, trash, plastic water bottles and even whisky bottles left around the valley stream. Many scenic spots in the vicinity were also drowning in a sea of garbage.




Another day, feeling on top of the world and enjoying the glorious views on the
sharp-edged mountain tops of Jebel Shams, the highest point in the Gulf, a couple of trash bags emitting the odour of contaminated food were enough to throw me into the doldrums and ruin all my joyful moments. 

Oman's gorgeous and most important assets – its clean pristine oceans, beaches, wadis, deserts and mountains – are being destroyed by vandals. This issue is getting more serious and strict rules and laws must be enforced to stop this attitude.

There are many deterrent rules and harsh punishments for who throw trash in public places in some developed countries. In Singapore, for instance, a person will have to pay a fine of US$1,000 (approximately RO385) if he or she chews gum, spits or throws garbage in public places. Such deterrent rules should also be applied in Oman, especially since the government's strategic plan is to move its focus towards the service sector and tourism to boost the economy.


Clean-up campaigns will help minimise the problem, but certainly won't solve it. We need more awareness, strict rules and more attention from the Ministry of Tourism to preserve scenic spots, in addition to periodic renovation.







Note:
This article was published also in Muscat Daily newspaper and you can find it here

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Welcome to our Journalism Nation!





Dear readers,
 citizen journalists,
 and all communication and journalism practitioners,


WELCOME to our Journalism Nation!!