Outpatient Services during (1423h) Hajj Season.

Objective: To analyse the pattern of patients attending the Out Patient Department (OPD) during the Hajj season 1423H with respect to their age, sex, nationality, services provided to them, and most importantly the disease trends and the medication given.

Method: A descriptive study was done at the OPD department in Al-Noor Specialist Hospital, Holy Makkah for the 15 days period of the Hajj, i.e., 1-15 /12/1423 corresponding to 2-16/ 02/2003. All patients who arrived at the OPD during that time whether on Hajj or non-Hajj and those who registered at OPD service became part of our study. With the help of standard "Blue Form"(provided annually by Ministry of Health exclusively for the OPD patients for every Hajj season), their age, sex, nationality, clinics attended, diagnosis and medications were noted.

Results: The results revealed that 3876 patients arrived and 3856 got registration at OPD. Of the registered cases, 1282 (33%) were Hajj patients and of those 873 (22%) were males. The Hajj patients were mostly non-Saudi (30.8%). The majority of patients, 384 (26.1%), were from the Middle East. The largest category, 240 (6.2%), of Hajj patients were in the age range 51-60 years. The medical clinic was the one attended by the maximum number of patients, 1675 (43.4%), and respiratory disease cases, 1582 (41%), were the commonest. Single medication as monotherapy accounted for 3644 (94.5%) of patients.

Conclusion: Non-Hajj patients were in the majority at OPD. Respiratory diseases were the commonest complaints. This study highlights a precarious situation during the Hajj where cross-infection proliferates in a dense population. Effective services and preventative measures need to be contemplated in the light of the present finding.