Critical issues with the cooling systems at the Rob Ferreira Hospital in Mpumalanga are resulting in surgical postponements and unnecessary delays in theatre procedures, reports The Citizen.
The rundown hospital came under fire recently after the SA Human Rights Commission exposed serious infrastructure issues during an oversight visit.
Patients awaiting urgent operations are now facing weeks of delays after sweltering conditions have forced doctors to postpone procedures. One patient said he was admitted about three weeks ago with a leg fracture, but his surgery was postponed because theatre temperatures were too high.
Acting CEO and clinical manager Dr Tefo Mabina confirmed challenges with regulating temperatures. He said the hospital has eight theatres with functional air conditioners and that the waiting time for procedures was two to six weeks.
“Unfortunately, when the hospital was built, they installed a central control system for all the aircons, which gets regulated to the same temperature,” he said.
He added that paediatric and burn patients often require warmer temperatures to ensure they do not develop hypothermia, for example.
The issue had already been raised in September by paediatric surgeons, and a service provider had been asked to modify two theatres’ air conditioners so that they could be regulated individually.
“We are awaiting the assessment to determine whether the change is feasible and what the cost will be,” he said
He was unable to say when the assessment was expected to be finalised.
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