The probe by SA Health Ombudsman of the ill-fated transfer of more than 2,000 psychiatric patients from Life Esidimeni to several non-governmental organisations, puts the death toll of at more than the reported 39, with as many as 80 having died.
The Health Ombudsman has apparently delivered a damning verdict on Gauteng Health MEC Qedani Mahlangu and her department in the probe, reports The Sunday Independent. The investigation was ordered by Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and undertaken by Ombudsman Professor Malegapuru Makgoba.
Sources said that Makgoba puts the death toll of the psychiatric patients at more than the reported 39, with as many as 80 having died. However, it is not known whether some of these deaths were found to have occurred prior to the patients being relocated.
The report says last year, Mahlangu announced the deaths of 36 psychiatric patients in the provincial legislature. The latest figure of more than 80 deaths has been interpreted to suggest there could have been a major cover up of some of the deaths.
According to highly placed sources, the probe heard from witnesses how the department was advised against the transferring of the patients from Life Esidimeni in Randfontein on the West Rand. It is believed that Makgoba in his findings has called for Mahlangu and two senior department officials to take responsibility for the scandal.
The report says pressure has been mounting on Mahlangu to step down since she announced the initial deaths of 36 patients. That sparked Motsoaledi’s announcement that he had commissioned well-known academic Makgoba to conduct an investigation into the deaths.
The report says Mahlangu is one of the longest-surviving MECs in the province and has held various portfolios since 1994. But an official in the premier’s office cautioned against people targeting individuals. “You see the problem is when people pick an individual. When this matter started, we said we are concerned people died in our care,” said the official.
“We welcome the decision by the Ombudsman to investigate so that it can assist us in taking appropriate action to ensure that this kind of thing doesn’t happen again."
The DA in Gauteng expressed concern at the report that as many as 80 psychiatric patients may have died. “This is way higher than the 39 deaths that have previously been reported,” DA Gauteng MPL Jack Bloom said in a report in The Citizen.
“It is unfortunate that the Health Ombudsman’s report has been delayed because Mahlangu asked for further time to respond to it. According to reported leaks about his findings, he calls for Mahlangu and two senior department officials to take responsibility for the deaths,” Bloom said. He hoped that Mahlangu met her deadline to respond to the report by Tuesday this week and that the full report was made public shortly thereafter.
“Her day of reckoning is coming closer, as she should have resigned or been fired after the first disclosure of the deaths in September last year after I asked a question about this in the Gauteng legislature. There needs to be accountability and relatives of the deceased patients deserve to know the truth as soon as possible,” Bloom is quoted in the report as saying.
[link url="http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/gauteng/damning-verdict-on-psychiatric-patients-deaths-7475657"]The Sunday Independent report[/link]
[link url="http://citizen.co.za/news/news-national/1404991/da-laments-shock-report-gauteng-patient-deaths/"]The Citizen report[/link]