Thursday, 28 March, 2024
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New staff after man dies waiting for a bed

Gauteng MEC for Health Qedani Mahlangu appoints 27 new health workers for the Natalspruit Hospital east of Johannesburg following coverage of a man who died after waiting 12 hours for a bed.

Health-e reports that Mahlangu's announcement follows a recent report that Katlehong resident Bheki Mabuya had died after waiting 12 hours for the bed at the hospital. Mabuya had been diagnosed with bacterial meningitis, or a swelling of the tissue surrounding the brain and spinal cord caused by an infection. The condition is serious and can lead to brain damage and hearing loss.

"We are welcoming a group of 15 enrolled nurses (staff nurses) and a total of 12 doctors who are starting in the coming weeks," Mahlangu said. "Improving quality of care will require more healthcare workers who are imbued with a sense of service and dedication." "The quality of care must always be of high standard, and when people question the way we do things we must always respond with empathy and not be complacent," said Mahlangu, who vowed that the department will continue to make contact with dissatisfied families and patients to improve care.

Mabuya's sister-in-law Mandisa Malangabi responded to the statement on behalf of the family. Malangabi said a systemic change was needed within the public health system. "What is required, and indeed what decision makers seem to be asking for, is a systematic, explicit approach to priority setting," she is quoted in the report as saying. "If the health care department can fast track the process through commitment and dedication, and strive for continuous improvement which focuses on burnout, low morale of staff and an ignorance of patients’ rights … issues like these can be eliminated."

 

Another Health-e report shows that East Rand women may be waiting months for life-saving cervical cancer screenings as the new Natalspruit Hospital battles a back log of screenings dating back to July 2014.

There are claims that many women were recently turned away from the hospital after they had arrived for scheduled gynaecological appointments – some had been referred to the hospital for a colposcopy where doctors use a binocular microscope to examine a woman's vagina and cervix for lesions that may be cancerous. Depending on the results, doctors may chose to remove, or biopsy, small sections of tissues to test for cancer.

Natalspruit Hospital is the only public health facility providing colposcopies for women living in surrounding communities like Vosloorus as well as those residing farther afield in Germiston, Alberton, and Heidelberg.

According to national cervical cancer screening guidelines, women 30 years and older should receive a Pap smear at their local clinics once every 10 years. Due to a higher risk of cervical cancer, women living with HIV should receive a Pap smear annually.

According to Linda Greef director of the advocacy organisation People Living with Cancer, patients should wait no more than two weeks for a colposcopy following an abnormal Pap smear result. She adds that a private sector patient could expect the process to take half as long.

Gauteng provincial chair for the Aids lobby group the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) Sibongile Tshabalala has confirmed it has also received reports of women being turned away from the hospital due to a doctor shortage. According to Tshabalala, the hospital board blamed a shortage of gynaecology specialists.

Gauteng Department of Health spokesman Prince Hamnca has confirmed that the hospital has four gynaecology specialists but attributed the backlog to the fact that one of these specialists was given additional duties in July 2014.

[link url="http://www.health-e.org.za/2015/05/01/gauteng-announces-new-doctors-nurses-for-natalspruit-hospital/"]Full Health-e report[/link]
[link url="http://www.health-e.org.za/2015/04/28/natalspruit-hospital-battles-cancer-screening-backlog/"]Full Health-e report[/link]

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