health

Pretoria - The frail and elderly patients at Huis Davidtz Retirement Home assumed the role of nurses, while they cleaned dishes and swept the floor, after yet another service disruption at the home. Some did not receive their daily chronic medication, while others were cleaned and fed late. One patient who has arthritis lay with a urine filled and unchanged diaper, which further gave the room a strong scent. The person was one of many patients at the troubled centre in the CBD, who have been left unattended while staff, who have worked there for decades without work contracts, went on strike. The issue of contracts date back to two decades ago with staff claiming they have worked at the home for more than 20 years without employment contracts. They also made allegations of racism, the abuse of patients by management, being underpaid, and more. In August, disgruntled nurses, volunteers, chefs and cleaners went on a three-day strike, led by the EFF with police k…

Academic Hospital’s acting chief executive Dr Mathabo Mathebula has denied allegations that the hospital’s oncology ward was under capacity and on the verge of collapse. “We need to clarify that at no stage was there a shut down. At no stage was there any machines broken down, it was the air conditioning that was being repaired and we battled to fix it. “It got repaired over time for two months, it was being repaired by the Department of Infrastructure until we resorted to calling the machine manufacturers to install the air cooling system that is now working,” Mathebula said. She was briefing the media after the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) conducted a site inspection at the hospital following the allegations, earlier today. Media reports alleged that about 934 cancer patients were awaiting radiation treatment at the hospital. There were also reports about the hospital’s failure to recruit an adequate number of staff and repair the broken down …

Frail and elderly patients at Huis Davidtz Retirement Home take on role of nurses after yet another service disruption at the home

Allegations denied that Steve Biko Academic Hospital is on the verge of collapse