Job Discussion Forums

desertmonkey · Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 25

Hello,

I'm a teacher and my wife is a medical doctor. We both want to go to Saudi to work for a few years

I have a humble family contract with a school which I havent signed and yesterday my wife received a good family contract from a large saudi hospital chain.

Now, can my wife and me be on each other's contract/iqama , and our baby on both contracts and take benefits from both contracts , or do one of our contracts has to be downgraded to a single or a local contract ?

Can any teachers here who have come across a similar case scenario or have an idea of what can happen (if we both sign both contracts) give some advice ?

Not trying to be greedy, but we would like to make our stay in Saudi as worthwhile as possible Thanks for all your help.

Desertmonkey

Cleopatra · Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2006 1:04 pm Post subject:

dmb · Joined: 12 Feb 2003 Posts: 8397

desertmonkey · Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 25

Dear dmb,

Yes, "unfortunately" western physicians seem to earn more than teachers do if they get employed by the right hospitals. My wife's package is worth double of mine and she is not even a counsultant ( yet). But you also have to look at their workload i.e. they normally have much longer hours.

Cleo,Thanks v much for the info.

At first, we felt inclined to go on my wife's contract. But since she has never worked overseas, I have to think of the small possibility that she may not like working life in a Saudi hospital especially at a full time basis ( i think her hours are 48/week ) plus being a mother.

What i mean is I prefer to be the main breadwinner, although earling less , as I hate to trouble her and make the smoothness of living in Saudi be primarily on her shoulders.But still, money is one of the main reasons why we are going to Saudi. And my wife said who knows , she might enjoy her job there... plus if she doesnt work she could lose her clinical skills. So at the moment , we are still 50-50%. Any teachers here with a connection with a doc working in Saudi ? Can life on the wards be as "brutal" as some of the dodgy ESL positions in some dodgy institution?

Nevertheless my wife is quite easy going about it and is letting me decide what is best for the family. But I would appreciate if I could get more ideas /suggestions from many more of you.

Thank you.

dmb · Joined: 12 Feb 2003 Posts: 8397

Sorry desertmonkey. I was just being silly. I have a habit of doing it.

Cleopatra · Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2006 4:44 pm Post subject:

What hospital is your wife going to be working in?

To the best of my knowledge, these days it's unusual for them to take on "Western" doctors. Most of them are either Saudi or from less wealthy nations such as Sudan, Egypt or the Indian Subcontinent. I would imagine that working as a doctor is like working as a teacher in the sense that experiences vary widely according to who you are working for. There are some good employers, and some lousy ones.

Your wife should ask to be put in touch with someone in the hospital, preferably someone from a similar background to her. This way she can make a more informed decision.

desertmonkey · Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 25

Dear Cleo,

My wife will be working at one of the King Abdul Aziz Medical City hospitals, previously known as the National Guard Hospital.

Its true Cleo, the Saudis are hiring thousands of physicians from India/Egypt etc and relatively much fewer westerners , but I also think this is mainly true for Ministry of Health (MOH) Hospitals. Many of the bigger non-MOH hospitals are still hunting for physicians with western board certifications ( which has to include at least a couple of years training/ experience in western countries like the US/UK), I can see the adverts everywhere on the internet.

I still think teaching is a better job for women - at least you wont get bleeped at 2am to see a dying patient! Don't get me wrong - I fully support my wife in whatever she wants to do. But she was the one who gave me the idea.

My wife has been thinking if she could teach medical students or Science in a school. But I doubt she could get a teaching job without any formal teaching experience ( apart from the occasional bedside teachings to her juniors and med students). She's been a doctor for 4 years. Do you think any teaching institution would consider hiring her ?

My wife even told me she is considering taking up a 20 hours crash course in TELF!

Cleopatra · Posted: Sun Jul 30, 2006 8:22 pm Post subject:

If I'm not wrong, medical students are generally taught on-site, ie, in the hospital itself? I know of people who taught in hospitals, even though they did not have any specific qualifications - something which would be absolutely essential in their home countries.

Regarding working in a school, your wife's lack of teaching credentials would probably rule her out. In any case, most state-run places won't take you unless you're a Muslim. For any teaching job in KSA, of course, you have to take into account gender segregation, whereby women can only teach women. This rule is often less strictly enforced in hospitals, but in most educational institutions it is absolute. Bearing in mind that most Saudis working in clinical or medical posts are male (though this is changing) this would not work to your wife's advantage.

In any case, this is something you wife would have to work out in advance, as you know. It's not that easy to switch from one job - or even one job title - to another once in KSA.