Thursday, 28 March, 2024
HomeWeekly RoundupKZN Health 'saddened' by doctor's and nurse's deaths

KZN Health 'saddened' by doctor's and nurse's deaths

KwaZulu-Natal Health said it was saddened by the deaths of a Cuban-trained doctor, as well as a trainee nurse who committed suicide, in separate incidents at the weekend.

News24 quotes health spokesperson as saying that a student nurse allegedly committed suicide by jumping from the 16th floor of a building at Addington Hospital on Sunday afternoon. He died instantly.

In a separate incident, a Cuban-trained doctor died unexpectedly after feeling unwell following an outing. Hlongwane said the doctor, who worked at Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital, had been out in Umlazi with friends and when he got back to his room he became distressed. His friends took him to the hospital's casualty section where he was certified dead on arrival, said Hlongwane.

Health MEC Sibongiseni Dhlomo said the department was saddened by the loss of clinical staff as this sets back its quest to provide universal access to healthcare to South Africans.

"In this instance we have lost a doctor whose contribution was invaluable as he was trained in preventative healthcare in line with the curriculum of Cuba… it is also sad to lose a student nurse from whom so much was still expected by his family, the department and community at large," he is quoted in the report as saying.

[link url="http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/kzn-health-department-saddened-by-deaths-of-nurse-and-doctor-20170206"]News24 report[/link]

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