Groblersdal Hospital nurses demonstrate against dirty OPD section
Groblersdal
Groblersdal Hospital staff nurses working at the Outpatient Department (OPD) have embarked in a series of demonstrations recently. The nurses are complaining about the uncleanliness of their working conditions.
They say the OPD section of the hospital has not been cleaned for months and they are now in fear of contracting diseases while working in untidy conditions.
The nurses say they approached the hospital management about their concerns and were given a cold shoulder.
On Friday 25 August, the demonstrations reached a boiling point where dozens of patients who are mainly at the hospital to collect their chronic medication were denied access to the hospital premises.
The unhappy staff members refused to allow patients in the building until the management address their complaints.
Some of affected patients were turned away while others opted to buy their medication at the pharmacies around Groblersdal Town.
A staff nurse who did not want to be named, said they disrupted hospital operations because they are tired of raising complaints to the management.
“The hospital CEO is using an iron fist approach to our problems. None of our complaints are taken seriously. There are many issues that needs to be resolved, the OPD is dirty and we cannot work on such conditions,” she said.
She added that there is a serious shortage of staff, which dates back to about five years ago and never addressed.
“People are retiring while some take transfers and never replaced. There are no cleaners here, it is not fair that nurses have to start by performing cleaning duties before attending to patients. How is that possible?” she asked.
The nurse said they will keep on demonstrating until the hospital management takes their complaints into consideration.
Ali Maloba, Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) Chairperson in Sekhukhune Region, said the Limpopo Department of Health, Groblersdal Hospital CEO and his management, have failed to fulfil their obligations in terms of Section 27 of the Constitution, stipulating that “Everyone has the right to access to healthcare services, including reproductive health care”.
Maloba said subsections (2) and (3) of the Constitution state clearly that “The state must take reasonable legislative and other measures, within its available resources, to achieve the progressive realisation of each of these rights; and no one may be refused emergency medical treatment”.
“Limpopo health officials from Groblersdal Hospital instead of addressing their own in house challenges, they opted to deny patients access to health. Apart from this incident alone, the management after realizing that there is a problem, they did not take any mitigation steps in trying to address the situation,” he said.
Maloba indicated that the party has received complaints that the Groblersdal Hospital CEO is taking days, sometimes months not attending to his duties at the hospital.
“The man is forever absent and untouchable, during our last service delivery march in 2016, the issue of absenteeism of the CEO was raised never attended,” he said.
Maloba indicated that apart from the OPD untidiness complaints, the hospital has other internal challenges that includes shortage of medication leading to chronic patients being forever turned away and the unclean environment at the hospital yard.
“For instance, ulcer medications and iron supplements are currently out of stock. We are also worried about the structural state of the hospital, having noting visible cracks and peeling paint, as well as roof leaks. Raining season is around the corner,” he said.
Maloba said the party is also concerned that local small businesses are not afforded the opportunity to conduct services and only those who are close to the CEO and management are given contracts.
“Maladministration and nepotism is the order of the day in the hospital. The unsatisfactory conditions of show clear signs that the institution is not managed properly. As EFF in Sekhukhune, we will continue keeping a close eye on all our health institutions within the region and we encourage the community not hesitate to report poor service delivery cases,” concluded Maloba.
When contacted for a comment, Department of Health Spokesperson in Limpopo, Neil Shikwambana, promised to comment on the ongoing demonstrations. Shikwambana’s comment could not reach the publication at the time of going to print.