The Finetown (Gauteng) clinic opened its doors last week after a four-year campaign by residents since the area’s mobile health facility was razed to the ground in protests in 2019.
It has taken years of pressure from residents, civil society organisations and political parties to get the two-storey facility up and ready, with desperately needed health services having been inaccessible for years, reports Daily Maverick.
At the official opening, Gauteng Health MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko said it marked a significant milestone for the Gauteng Department of Health in addressing disparities in the system.
She said the opening signalled a new way of operating, where patients would be greeted with “a smile”, starting with the security guards at the gate.
The MEC called out her cellphone number, urging anyone who received poor treatment from clinic staff to report this to her, and cautioned the community to take care of the clinic, saying that if it was burnt down by protesters, the department would not replace it.
She insisted the Gauteng Health Department was undergoing a “clean-up” to make it run more efficiently and that non-performing staff who compromised patient care and services would be rooted out. She also committed to installing cameras inside medical facilities to monitor staff.
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