over the past 30 years, incidents related to abuse of doctors and other medical personnel have been disturbingly increasing. the government has not acted with necessary seriousness to put an end to what has become almost a custom and a culture of a society that insists on backwardness and tries to solve its problems by one’s own hand without waiting for the word of justice. the situation has worsened, and the medical profession associations have almost failed in fulfi lling their duties in this regard. they have been reluctant in urging the concerned authorities to act quickly, and to issue necessary legislation and decisions that would preserve the most honorable profession and stop such attacks, or at least to prevent exacerbation. it is said that the current minister of health pays more attention to this matter. however, it requires rapid and decisive steps. the incidents are increasing in number, and it will not be soon when we hear of the death of a doctor on duty by visitors or the relatives of a patient. one of the faithful doctors proposed enacting a fi rm and clear law to protect the medical body from mob attacks. this law is similar to the one in many countries, and not in heresy. it is noteworthy that talks about the issuance of such a law have been ongoing since 2010, but the promises of the former ministers in this regard have all been empty. perhaps, the solution will come from the current minister. a reader’s doctor said it is essential for the state to immediately provide the necessary security and protection to doctors, especially when they are following up critical and sensitive cases, which can sometimes result in death or disability of the patients. the proposed law should bring an end to the arrest or suspension of any doctor against whom complaints are lodged, except after professional investigations are carried out by the competent ministerial committee. the punishment must be imposed on the aggressor after the complaint against the doctor is dropped. it is also necessary to preserve the dignity of the doctor — the victim — from tiresome trips through the corridors of security institutions. this task must be undertaken by the legal team of ministry of health. the ministry must be a party to any case of aggression and must be under obligation to follow up all complaints, assess performance and follow-up. the doctor should also be exempted from taking the blame for medical errors, in the absence of security and administrative roles, and in the absence of their presence in the workplace, in accordance with the rules and regulations. the punishment against those who attack doctors and medical staff, which sometimes cause harm to their lives, or against those who threaten them, or damage their reputation must be intensi- fi ed. all this does not mean that the doctor will not be held accountable in the event of an error committed by him as a result of either misbehavior or negligence in the performance of his duty. however, his accountability should not come in the form of attacking him inside or outside his workplace. accountability should be through the judiciary and should take the normal course of action, if we wish to be part of the rational human system. of course, it is important to impose necessary punishment on any doctor whose negligence in the performance of his job or his shortcoming is proven. most importantly, the concerned authorities, headed by the minister of health, must quickly move towards approving this law which has remained for a long time on the shelves and in the drawers of the cabinet. the law must be issued at the earliest before we see an image of the corpse of a doctor on the front pages of newspapers.

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