Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has asked Ombudsman Professor Taole Mokoena to initiate a probe into Helen Joseph Hospital, saying he doesn’t want “the Gauteng Department of Health to investigate itself”, and that he was disappointed by the negative reports linked to the hospital.
The Minister said the treatment received by patient Thomas Holmes – the radio personality known as Tom London, whose revealing Facebook videos about the hospital were widely disseminated – was unacceptable and would be probed independently.
“As we speak, inspectors from the Office of Health Standards Compliance (OHSC) are already at Helen Joseph. On Tuesday, I wrote to the health ombud – the public protector of health – to look into this,” he told News24.
In a Facebook live video, which went viral, Holmes had complained of disrespectful hospital staff, ill-treatment from doctors who lacked urgency and courtesy, and being forced to lie for hours opposite a fellow patient who had died in his ward.
The video also exposed the dire conditions at the hospital and showed shoddy bathrooms and taps without running water.
Gauteng Health has, however, defended its handling of the death of Nicholas Johannes van Burick (34), after claims that his body lay neglected for hours while flies swarmed around it .
London, who discharged himself after signing a refusal of treatment form – and raising public funds to book into a private hospital – said Van Burick was terminally ill and had been left unattended after his death.
“He was left there for hours in a bed just metres from me.
“The flies descended on him, and about another 200 came through the window … they were now running all over my skin too and crawling over my water glass.”
Another patient in the same ward, distressed by the presence of the corpse, reportedly wheeled himself out of the room and into the passage, he said.
Health Department admits delay
Motalatale Modiba, the spokesperson for Gauteng Health, admitted the body was removed after two and a half hours, instead of the mandated one hour.
He claimed attempts were made to contact the family using the cellphone number provided in the patient file, “but it went to voicemail”.
The police were notified to open a case in accordance with the Inquests Act, but they were also unsuccessful in reaching the family, Modiba said.
Van Burick’s mother, Cicilia, said the first she heard of her son’s death was through Holmes, who had let her know. She said no one from the hospital had phoned to tell her he had died.
“I couldn’t even be by his bedside in his dying moments. I had to find out the hard way after already losing a daughter and my husband as well. It broke me…”
Modiba emphasised the Department’s commitment to improving service delivery and addressing staff attitudes as part of their I Serve With a Smile campaign.
Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s office said the issue was under investigation.
Motsoaledi expressed disappointment at the treatment delivered by the hospital.
“It’s unacceptable. We can’t have that type of healthcare system. But I think it would be unfair … to paint all other hospitals like that. Because they’re not,” he said.
“To make it an example …to say that this is how NHI is going to work, is unfair. Whatever mistakes happen, happen. We can’t use it as a yardstick (to measure what) NHI is going to look like.”
Gauteng Health said it would allow an independent process to review the quality of clinical care provided to Holmes, who was admitted after fluid had built up in his lungs, resulting in breathing difficulties.
According to the Department's complaints report on Helen Joseph, 41 complaints had been lodged during the past financial year, relating to long waiting lists, staff attitude and patient care.
Since the start of the current financial year in April to date, 11 complaints have been received.
Modiba said patients were encouraged to lodge complaints through ward managers, quality assurance offices, and complaints boxes.
“All complaints are investigated and feedback is provided to complainants through redress meetings,” he added.
But DA provincial health spokesperson Jack Bloom said he found the number of complaints received “suspiciously low”.
“I personally had more complaints than that,” he added. “And even those who come to me say they don’t want to make trouble because they fear reprisals for rocking the boat.”
Outpatients were considerably more secure in complaining than inpatients, who were vulnerable and dependent on the staff’s goodwill, Bloom said.
And the officially reported cases were only those who have made a concerted effort to take their dissatisfaction further, he pointed out.
Bloom said “a good captain” was needed to fix the mess at Helen Joseph, and that it was appalling the facility had not had a permanent CEO for years.
OHSC under-funded
According to Motsoaledi, officials from the OHSC had reported to Helen Joseph without their intervention being requested: “Part of their work is to pick up things that are happening, and go.”
The independent body was established to act as a watchdog over both public and private health establishments countrywide.
The public entity has, however, been crippled by a lack of resources. In 2021, it complained to Parliament its budget did not adequately cover its expenses, that it only managed to resolve five of the 203 complaints within its target of 30 working days in the previous financial year. Nine complaints had required a full-scale investigation; only one had been resolved in its six-month target.
Motsoaledi’s spokesperson, Foster Mohale, said the Department was working closely with the OHSC to bolster its capacity to “monitor and enforce compliance by health establishments with norms and standards”.
Homes waiting for surgery
Meanwhile, surviving with the help of penicillin, resting and breathless, Holmes is back home awaiting the phone call to tell him when he will have the operation that will “hopefully save my life”.
“The money is in Morningside Mediclinic’s bank account, I’ve seen my pulmonologist and am waiting to hear from the cardiothoracic surgeon and then they’ll set the surgery for as soon as possible, I imagine,” he told TimesLIVE Premium.
Holmes has empyema – pockets of pus in his lung cavity. It’s a bacterial infection caused by pneumonia, and has worsened, he said, because the infection was stronger than the antibiotics used to treat it, and he now needs surgery to have it removed as it is too advanced to be treated by medication or drained.
“Healthwise, I’m not in pain and I’m breathing OK with my one good lung and my oxygen levels are good. Emotionally, I've been sick for a month and am glad to be home. When the money ran out the hospital discharged me and told me to come back when I’ve got the money for the operation.
“The thing I am most glad about is the suffering is over. You can’t imagine how you suffer in a state hospital – the mattresses are thin, the bathrooms are broken, you can’t bath and the food is dire. If you haven’t experienced it it’s hard to imagine how much you suffer.”
After friends organised a Back-a-Buddy page for him, hordes of supporters have crowdfunded the surgery Holmes needs. It is a large-scale procedure: 150 minutes of theatre time that will see him admitted to specialised ICU after and then moved to ICU, then high care and then a general ward in a recovery period estimated to last eight days.
“As I understand it, the surgeon will make a 7cm incision under the ribs on my left side, into the pleural cavity. They will then cut through the diaphragm into the cavity and remove about 1.5l of infected pus in various pockets. A leathery skin has also grown around my lung so they will have to pull that off. Then they will wash it out with antibiotics, sew me up, put me on a ventilator and hopefully that will be the end of it.”
The operation costs have been quoted at R275 000 and just more than R300 000 has been raised on Back-a-Buddy. Holmes hopes it will be enough to cover laboratory tests, X-rays, physiotherapy and Back-a-Buddy’s commission. But, he says, no matter what, he doesn’t plan on asking for money from people again.
“My doctors have assured me walking is best for recovery so I am not going to a step-down facility. My plan is to do things as cheaply as possible and recover on my own and hopefully live through to the ‘what’s next for Tom?’ part of the story.”
TimesLIVE article – What now for Tom London as he faces life-saving surgery? (Restricted access)
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