# Sharm international hospital ?



## mekado

I want to ask all the expats in Sharm El Sheik if they ever been to Sharm International Hospital and what do they think about it.


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## MaidenScotland

Wondering why you are asking 

Maiden


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## mekado

I've seen the recommendations about hospitals and doctors in Sharm and didn't see anyone talking about this hospital which I know as the largest and the most equipped hospital and containing the most qualified doctors.
that is why I wonder why is that


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## King.Tut

I've not visited the hospital in question myself personally but have heard it is very clean and modern but isn't the preference of expats. Most expats I know use the South Sinai Hospital just down the road.

My father passed away in Sharm and was dealt with by the Sharm International Hospital. My mother said the staff were very compassionate and helpful and assisted very much so with the handling of documentation and transfer of my father to the UK. He didn't receive any medical care as such in the hospital so therefore I am unable to tell you how their medical skills rate in comparision to other hospitals and clinics in Sharm.


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## mekado

thanks for your reply ,King.Tut and sorry about your dad
I think that the hospital being not the preference of the expats because they have been directed for other private hospitals by people who take money from these hospitals


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## marimar

I have used the Sharm international hospital a few times and my experience is this, the accident and emergency area and staff are very good, helpful and medically adequate. 
I have been there during pregnancy and found their doctors in this area to be vague, unhelpful, unsympathetic, i was due to have an operation there but decided to travel to Alexandria instead, although this was 6 or 7 years ago so they may be different now. 
One time i was there i was asked to go to the toilets to provide a urine sample and the disgusting state of the toilets made me feel sick, they were dirty, smelly and not what you would expect for a hospital.
Until the new Sinai hospital it was one of the only options in Sharm but at least now we have a choice.
My husband is Egyptian so its not just a case of foreigners being treated differently but we just found that for a so called international hospital it needs a lot of improvements. But like i said we haven't used this hospital in the last few years so this is just my experience from past visits.


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## mekado

marimar said:


> I have used the Sharm international hospital a few times and my experience is this, the accident and emergency area and staff are very good, helpful and medically adequate.
> I have been there during pregnancy and found their doctors in this area to be vague, unhelpful, unsympathetic, i was due to have an operation there but decided to travel to Alexandria instead, although this was 6 or 7 years ago so they may be different now.
> One time i was there i was asked to go to the toilets to provide a urine sample and the disgusting state of the toilets made me feel sick, they were dirty, smelly and not what you would expect for a hospital.
> Until the new Sinai hospital it was one of the only options in Sharm but at least now we have a choice.
> My husband is Egyptian so its not just a case of foreigners being treated differently but we just found that for a so called international hospital it needs a lot of improvements. But like i said we haven't used this hospital in the last few years so this is just my experience from past visits.


you are right the hospital has witnessed a lot of improvements in the last few months (the toilets now are very clean) and the service is much better
By the way the foreigners in Egypt are treated better than the Egyptians most of the time
Any how, one reason I was asking that question is that I have a friend there who works as a pediatrician and he keep telling me that the service there is very good,yet not many foreigners seem to know about the hospital at all.I've been there myself and it looks fine for me


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## MaidenScotland

mekado said:


> you are right the hospital has witnessed a lot of improvements in the last few months (the toilets now are very clean) and the service is much better
> By the way the foreigners in Egypt are treated better than the Egyptians most of the time
> Any how, one reason I was asking that question is that I have a friend there who work as a pediatrician and he keep telling me that the service there is very good,yet not many foreigners seem to know about the hospital at all.I've been there myself and it looks fine for me




LOL before I even read this I was saying to myself... he has a connection with this hospital and yes I am right.
Come back in a year and tell us the toilets are still clean and the medical care is improving daily.. that way you may get foreigners using it. We know how quickly things can improve but then we also see that after a couple of months things just slide back to the way they were... look at the rubbish that is back on the streets!

Yes I have to admit that I have always been treated very well in hospital but can I compare it to an Egyptians experience? No.


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## mekado

MaidenScotland said:


> LOL before I even read this I was saying to myself... he has a connection with this hospital and yes I am right.
> Come back in a year and tell us the toilets are still clean and the medical care is improving daily.. that way you may get foreigners using it. We know how quickly things can improve but then we also see that after a couple of months things just slide back to the way they were... look at the rubbish that is back on the streets!
> 
> Yes I have to admit that I have always been treated very well in hospital but can I compare it to an Egyptians experience? No.


I wish I do come back in a year and say that,however after 25th of January I'm very optimistic about the future in Egypt.

Anyway, one important factor for maintaining the hospital improvement is being used by foreigners and giving it a chance.


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## MaidenScotland

mekado said:


> I wish I do come back in a year and say that,however after 25th of January I'm very optimistic about the future in Egypt.
> 
> Anyway, one important factor for maintaining the hospital improvement is being used by foreigners and giving it a chance.




I am presuming you are the actual doctor and I have no problem with that, if you are, ask outright what foreigners want to see in a hospital, clinic etc and what would make them use it?

Maiden


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## mekado

MaidenScotland said:


> I am presuming you are the actual doctor and I have no problem with that, if you are, ask outright what foreigners want to see in a hospital, clinic etc and what would make them use it?
> 
> Maiden


I'm a doctor but not "The doctor".I'm having a job proposal in the hospital to work in the pediatrics/neonatology department and here I am in Sharm to see how things are going around.I really like the place and the hospital but I used to work before in an university hospital with a very high number of patients and I just don't like to work in a place with very few patients like here.It is not about money as it is a governmental hospital and we take a nearly fixed salary, but it is mainly about loving to work and remaining active

Anyhow here is the question: What foreigners want to see in the hospital and make them use it?


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## txlstewart

MaidenScotland said:


> I am presuming you are the actual doctor and I have no problem with that, if you are, ask outright what foreigners want to see in a hospital, clinic etc and what would make them use it?
> 
> Maiden


I wonder how many expat sites he has recently joined?


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## MaidenScotland

For me hygiene is the top priority.
Nurses should not be wearing nail polish... 
Latex gloves used for every procedure and they should be put on correctly. no just grabbing them out of the box.. there is a correct way to keep them as clean as possible.
I hate seeing blood on uniforms, so staff should have more than one uniform.
The automatic showing of a sealed needle prior to being stuck.
Using disposable paper on examination beds... changed after every patient.
British patients like to see the doctor in the morning.. they are happy to go to an appointment at 9am.. they don't want to be going at 11pm.
Toys, childrens books available in the waiting rooms.
No t.v blasting away in the reception area.



I will think on....


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## marimar

Quote:


> Originally Posted by mekado
> By the way the foreigners in Egypt are treated better than the Egyptians most of the time


Sadly this is true but i suppose when you charge a foreigner 10 times more than an Egyptian for the same treatment you feel obliged to treat them better, i know this is the case in Sharm and not the same for all Egypt. 

Anyway :focus: and i agree with Maiden that for a lot of people hygiene of staff and cleanliness of the hospital are top of the list when it comes to wants.
Reception staff who at least have a little language skills to be able to understand what you want and can help with problems would also be good.
If you want to see more comments about the hospital you should check out the and read the forum on health, people have posts on there.

As an addition i would also like to say that in Sharm we definately need more decent pediatrician's. I think also because the doctors here have so many nationalities to deal with and everyone has their own idea about what a doctor should be like so you are not going to please all the people all the time. Maybe the hospital should do like the new Sinai hospital and advertise new doctors and services or else how do people know about them or know that the hospital is improving?


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## Whiskey96

Used this hospital 2 - 3 years ago after a dog attack in Ras Mohamed....
Why..? because it is very "visible", and it was emergency treatment.
Service..? Polite, professional and quick - (did not have to wait for anyone to
finish their meal or praying....).
Cannot remember the exact cost, but do remember that the cost of treatment
and anti-rabies shot was around 30% less than in Cairo.
End result..? Perfectly satisfied, and would be confident of using the facility again.....


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## mekado

MaidenScotland said:


> For me hygiene is the top priority.
> Nurses should not be wearing nail polish...
> Latex gloves used for every procedure and they should be put on correctly. no just grabbing them out of the box.. there is a correct way to keep them as clean as possible.
> I hate seeing blood on uniforms, so staff should have more than one uniform.
> The automatic showing of a sealed needle prior to being stuck.
> Using disposable paper on examination beds... changed after every patient.
> British patients like to see the doctor in the morning.. they are happy to go to an appointment at 9am.. they don't want to be going at 11pm.
> Toys, childrens books available in the waiting rooms.
> No t.v blasting away in the reception area.
> 
> 
> 
> I will think on....


Thank you all very much for participation it is really helpful
about hygiene there is strict infection control policy being adopted by the hospital administration
I've not seen nail polish but I've seen "Henna" on nurses hands, I asked, it has nothing to do with risk of infections
the latex gloves,blood on uniforms,needle sealing and disposable paper sheet are all parts of the infection control policies.However to be honest their applications varies from one department to another but generally they are sufficient
all clinics start at 9:00 am so it won't be a problem for British patients
we don't have toys or children books or T.V.'s in reception area actually patients don't have to stay much waiting


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## mekado

marimar said:


> Quote:
> 
> 
> Sadly this is true but i suppose when you charge a foreigner 10 times more than an Egyptian for the same treatment you feel obliged to treat them better, i know this is the case in Sharm and not the same for all Egypt.
> 
> Anyway :focus: and i agree with Maiden that for a lot of people hygiene of staff and cleanliness of the hospital are top of the list when it comes to wants.
> Reception staff who at least have a little language skills to be able to understand what you want and can help with problems would also be good.
> If you want to see more comments about the hospital you should check out the and read the forum on health, people have posts on there.
> 
> As an addition i would also like to say that in Sharm we definately need more decent pediatrician's. I think also because the doctors here have so many nationalities to deal with and everyone has their own idea about what a doctor should be like so you are not going to please all the people all the time. Maybe the hospital should do like the new Sinai hospital and advertise new doctors and services or else how do people know about them or know that the hospital is improving?


you pay 10 times more than an Egyptian because you go to private hospitals
in Sharm Int. hospital if you are married to an Egyptian you pay like an Egyptian if not you pay the same number but in Dollars or Euro (still higher but not 10 folds)but generally lab.'s and investigations will cost less than in private hospitals

I don't think language skills are to be a problem anywhere in Sharm, but I didn't check that out fully

about decent pediatricians...what do you mean by "decent"..and I'm surprised that sharm need more pediatricians..actually I've not seen much patients since I came in 
about advertisement I don't think I can convince the hospital administration about this,but if someone wants to ask about the services or even come to see the hospital I'd be glad to help as long as I'm here


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## MaidenScotland

mekado said:


> Thank you all very much for participation it is really helpful
> about hygiene there is strict infection control policy being adopted by the hospital administration
> I've not seen nail polish but I've seen "Henna" on nurses hands, I asked, it has nothing to do with risk of infections
> the latex gloves,blood on uniforms,needle sealing and disposable paper sheet are all parts of the infection control policies.However to be honest their applications varies from one department to another but generally they are sufficient
> all clinics start at 9:00 am so it won't be a problem for British patients
> we don't have toys or children books or T.V.'s in reception area actually patients don't have to stay much waiting




Your welcome.

Henna.. it doesn't really matter if it has nothing to do with a risk of infection... you are asking why foreigners are not using the hospital so you must look at it as they do... Henna is lovely for a day or two then it looks a complete mess and dirty.. if it looks dirty to us we wont use it. Sorry but sufficient is not enough , yes our own hospitals at home are not as they once are but all expats over the world want a high standard not sufficient, if they can get a higher standard somewhere else they will go there.

I contacted hepatitis here and the doctor asked me what I was making a fuss about as everyone in the middle east has/had hepatitis this is not a concept we like.


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## mekado

Thanks for all your replies and participation and I'm looking forward for more
Actually I was looking forward for Sam to reply too, as she was the one giving recommendations about hospitals in Sharm and she looks like a good adviser for all expats in Sharm


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## mekado

MaidenScotland said:


> Your welcome.
> 
> Henna.. it doesn't really matter if it has nothing to do with a risk of infection... you are asking why foreigners are not using the hospital so you must look at it as they do... Henna is lovely for a day or two then it looks a complete mess and dirty.. if it looks dirty to us we wont use it. Sorry but sufficient is not enough , yes our own hospitals at home are not as they once are but all expats over the world want a high standard not sufficient, if they can get a higher standard somewhere else they will go there.
> 
> I contacted hepatitis here and the doctor asked me what I was making a fuss about as everyone in the middle east has/had hepatitis this is not a concept we like.


I meant nail henna not hand henna,but yes I understand what you are talking about
sufficient is not the case in all departments,we have high standards of care in many departments like I.C.U,nursery and cardiac cath. and many others
I've not been to other hospitals in Sharm yet to compare but I think I should do that soon
I'm sorry you contacted hepatitis here and sorry again about the doctor's comment.I hope things will change to better soon


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## hurghadapat

mekado said:


> I meant nail henna not hand henna,but yes I understand what you are talking about
> sufficient is not the case in all departments,we have high standards of care in many departments like I.C.U,nursery and cardiac cath. and many others
> I've not been to other hospitals in Sharm yet to compare but I think I should do that soon
> I'm sorry you contacted hepatitis here and sorry again about the doctor's comment.I hope things will change to better soon


The post op after care seems to be a bit lacking as well....they don't seem to do the frequent obs like they do in the uk....or even the pre op ones,and if you don't have either family or your own maid to take care of you then you are left pretty much on your own......what the nurses are trained to do i really do not know.


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## Sam

mekado said:


> Thanks for all your replies and participation and I'm looking forward for more
> Actually I was looking forward for Sam to reply too, as she was the one giving recommendations about hospitals in Sharm and she looks like a good adviser for all expats in Sharm


Hi Mekado,

Sorry, been away for a while and since being back in Sharm have hit the ground running!!

I have myself been to the hospital, albeit over 4 years ago. I was in a car accident and put my head through the windscreen. Someone called the ambulance for me, I was taken to the A&E department of the hospital and seen to almost immediately. My injuries were luckily not severe and I did not need anything more than to have the wounds cleaned and dressed.

That is the positive part of my experience, the negative side of things, almost nobody I was with spoke English (and this was just a few months after arriving to Egypt and at that point I did not know any Arabic). After I was seen to there was a lot of waiting around for paperwork to be filed (this may have been due to the nature of the incident though since the rest of the day was spent making police reports about the accident).

The next time I was at the hospital was when a friend of mine had fallen down some stairs. This was just over a year ago and the staff still didn't seem to speak English and we were there for some hours whilst various tests were done etc.

My reason therefore for not recommending the hospital is that in my own experiences of it (although I realise both cases were in A&E) there was a lot of waiting around and not very friendly or communicative staff. Also if there are any tests required I believe you are sent away to a lab to do them, similarly there is no pharmacy on site.

I would very happily recommend South Sinai hospital. I have visited it on an emergency basis after I thought my daughter had swallowed a coin. I was dealt with very swiftly, the staff spoke to me in perfect English and were also very good with my daughter. We did not have to wait at any point for anything. We went to x-ray immediately, waited only around 5 minutes for the images to be looked at and were allowed to take them home with us. The staff were friendly and efficient and knowledgeable. When booking an appointment with them the reception staff are also very good and easy to communicate with. Also there are labs on site should tests be required and a well stocked and fair priced pharmacy (no haggling required!!!). The hospital in general I found had a much cleaner and well looked after appearance.

The fact that Sharm International Hospital is a government hospital and South Sinai a private hospital also makes a difference to me.

Sam


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## mekado

Thanks Sam for your reply and welcome back to Sharm
first of all I'm sorry for your bad experience and yes I believe things were that bad in the past.
What I'm concerned about is the evaluation of the new improvements that has been adopted by the hospital in the last few months 
The emergency department didn't witness any major changes yet but I think there is no serious problem about communication now .I believe at least that all doctors understand English very well and there is more than one in the public relations department who speak more than one language.I still believe that we are lacking many communication skills especially the nurses and workers
There is a lab now and x-ray,C.T. and MRI inside the hospital and a pharmacy just outside it. The results are not to be delayed and you can take it with you as you already pay for it
They have a serious problem selling themselves as regard the general look and good communication 
to be honest I would prefer a private hospital for minor complaints but for major complaints you may just end up in Sharm Int. hospital or at least that what happened with a newborn who was admitted in the nursery in a private hospital and the condition got complicated with pulmonary hemorrhage so what they did is sending it to us.
I don't believe there is another center in Sharm who do cardiac characterization or have a well trained staff in the ICU or neonatal ICU like here in Sharm Int. hospital .That's why I 
was surprised in first place why the hospital was not full of patients especially the foreigners.I know now some parts of the foreigners opinion about the hospital but nothing about recent experiences
Hope to hear more from everyone and thank you again Sam
best wishes


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## Sam

mekado said:


> Thanks Sam for your reply and welcome back to Sharm
> first of all I'm sorry for your bad experience and yes I believe things were that bad in the past.
> What I'm concerned about is the evaluation of the new improvements that has been adopted by the hospital in the last few months
> The emergency department didn't witness any major changes yet but I think there is no serious problem about communication now .I believe at least that all doctors understand English very well and there is more than one in the public relations department who speak more than one language.I still believe that we are lacking many communication skills especially the nurses and workers
> There is a lab now and x-ray,C.T. and MRI inside the hospital and a pharmacy just outside it. The results are not to be delayed and you can take it with you as you already pay for it
> They have a serious problem selling themselves as regard the general look and good communication
> to be honest I would prefer a private hospital for minor complaints but for major complaints you may just end up in Sharm Int. hospital or at least that what happened with a newborn who was admitted in the nursery in a private hospital and the condition got complicated with pulmonary hemorrhage so what they did is sending it to us.
> I don't believe there is another center in Sharm who do cardiac characterization or have a well trained staff in the ICU or neonatal ICU like here in Sharm Int. hospital .That's why I
> was surprised in first place why the hospital was not full of patients especially the foreigners.I know now some parts of the foreigners opinion about the hospital but nothing about recent experiences
> Hope to hear more from everyone and thank you again Sam
> best wishes



I'm glad to hear there are improvements in the hospital and I thank you for coming here to inform us. It seems a shame that the hospital doesn't publicise the changes more, if it has spent money to improve it's services, staff and equipment it would be logical to make it known.

I think I would tend to agree with you that the international hospital seems to be more of the place for more serious complaints, but, if the circumstances would allow, I think if I or someone I knew had a very serious complaint I might prefer to travel to Cairo or Alexandria. That would be just as much about cost as it would care though. I am not aware of the costs at the hospital, but I know for a fact that everything in Sharm has a mark up, even if you are treated as an Egyptian.


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## mekado

Sam said:


> I'm glad to hear there are improvements in the hospital and I thank you for coming here to inform us. It seems a shame that the hospital doesn't publicise the changes more, if it has spent money to improve it's services, staff and equipment it would be logical to make it known.
> 
> I think I would tend to agree with you that the international hospital seems to be more of the place for more serious complaints, but, if the circumstances would allow, I think if I or someone I knew had a very serious complaint I might prefer to travel to Cairo or Alexandria. That would be just as much about cost as it would care though. I am not aware of the costs at the hospital, but I know for a fact that everything in Sharm has a mark up, even if you are treated as an Egyptian.


I think the administration is waiting for these improvements to complete to make it known and here where the the administration and I disagree

I think if something serious happened you should consult someone here before traveling anywhere but yes things here are more expensive than in Cairo or Alexandria ,still you need to be sure that you need to travel I mean it could be something simple and you just don't know

Anyway as I may have said I'll give it another chance here for about a month but I'm not going to tolerate staying with such low flow rate more than this plus I'm beginning to feel a little lonely in here..so I may go back home


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## MaidenScotland

mekado said:


> I think the administration is waiting for these improvements to complete to make it known and here where the the administration and I disagree
> 
> I think if something serious happened you should consult someone here before traveling anywhere but yes things here are more expensive than in Cairo or Alexandria ,still you need to be sure that you need to travel I mean it could be something simple and you just don't know
> 
> Anyway as I may have said I'll give it another chance here for about a month but I'm not going to tolerate staying with high flow rate more than this plus I'm beginning to feel a little lonely in here..so I may go back home




Why do you not get the travel reps to come and see the hospital? Give them a tour, show them the improvements etc and they in turn may recommend the hospital to tourist who need treatment.


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## mekado

MaidenScotland said:


> Why do you not get the travel reps to come and see the hospital? Give them a tour, show them the improvements etc and they in turn may recommend the hospital to tourist who need treatment.


As I told you I'm not the administration and I don't decide the hospital's policy.The travel reps only care about money the hospital will give them for each patient they bring to it and this is where private hospitals can always beat governmental hospitals


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## mekado

Tourism is back in Sharm and patient flow is rising.I can see foreigners allover the hospital now .I've even admitted one in the pediatrics department.


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## MaidenScotland

I was going to say Mubruk but would that be congratulating people who need hospital treatment? I am sure as a doctor you are happier when you have people to treat so on that hand congratulaions


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## mekado

MaidenScotland said:


> I was going to say Mubruk but would that be congratulating people who need hospital treatment? I am sure as a doctor you are happier when you have people to treat so on that hand congratulaions


I'm receiving many congratulations today ,as it is my birthday, but yours is the funniest one  ..I become happy when people who are sick get well with my help so literally it is health what makes me happy not sickness
but thank you very much for your kindness..


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## misspayne

King.Tut said:


> I've not visited the hospital in question myself personally but have heard it is very clean and modern but isn't the preference of expats. Most expats I know use the South Sinai Hospital just down the road.
> 
> My father passed away in Sharm and was dealt with by the Sharm International Hospital. My mother said the staff were very compassionate and helpful and assisted very much so with the handling of documentation and transfer of my father to the UK. He didn't receive any medical care as such in the hospital so therefore I am unable to tell you how their medical skills rate in comparision to other hospitals and clinics in Sharm.


Hi, I need a private dentist do you know of a really good dentist in sharm or surrounding? thanks


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## King.Tut

misspayne, I apologise for the lateness of my reply - I haven't been online for a while!

There is one dentist that I use and would recommened, he is based in the Nabq area and his named is Dr Ahmed Sherif. You can find his clinic next to the 'Britannia Bar'.

I've used him several times, he's highly professional and well trained, his prices are reasonable to for the standard of work he provides. Considerably better than most I've enquired about here in Sharm.


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