Article 30 of the Saudi Private Health Institutions Law

This article imposes important reporting and recording duties on the private health institution.

First: immediate reporting. The institution must immediately notify two bodies together:

• The nearest competent security authority.
• The health affairs directorate in the region.

About what?

1. Any criminal incident that happens to patients visiting it or admitted to it.
2. Any death that happens to patients visiting or admitted.
3. Any criminal incident that drove the injured person to seek emergency aid or treatment there, meaning the incident occurred outside it but the injured person came to it because of it.

Second: recording. The institution must keep a complete record of:

• Traffic accidents.
• Injuries.

Note that the report is made to both bodies, not to one of them. Also, the text does not require immediate reporting of traffic accidents and injuries as such, but a complete record, unless one is a criminal incident or a death, in which case it falls under the duty to report.

The article does not state the method of reporting or the details of the record.

It is preceded by Article 29, which allows the Minister of Health in emergencies to order the use of any private health institution or part of it in return for fair costs. The purpose of the duties in this article is to let the security and health authorities know the facts in good time, and to keep a record that can be referred to.

If an institution is held accountable for delay in reporting a criminal incident, it would be appropriate to consult a lawyer who specializes in criminal or administrative cases.