DA Limpopo lambasts state of Emergency Medical Services
LIMPOPO – The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Limpopo has raised concerns over the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) in the province.
According to the DA, innocent lives remain jeopardised as the services in Limpopo collapse. Lindy Wilson, DA Limpopo spokesperson for Health, said the party demands that the Minister of Health, Dr. Aaron Motsoaledi, intervenes in the collapsed EMS in the province.
Wilson stated that of great concern is the lack of qualified ambulance crews to administer life-saving interventions for patients requiring critical care.
“After much grandstanding and fanfare around the handover of dozens of new ambulances to public facilities around the province, very few have qualified crews to operate them. In fact, the DA is advised that there are only four advanced medical practitioners in the province,” Wilson pointed out.
She alluded that paramedics and EMS personnel are required to complete a Higher Certificate in Emergency Medical Care, the most basic life support requirement – very basic paramedic, a Diploma in Emergency Medical Care or a Bachelor’s Degree in Emergency Medical Care for Advanced Medical Practitioners.
“The majority of the crews on ambulances only have the basic Certificate in Emergency Medical Care and are not qualified to administer life-saving interventions like intubation. As a result, critical patients’ lives have been put at risk by inadequately qualified personnel to assist where necessary. The crisis is made worse by the fact that neither the Thazimbi nor the Capricorn training facilities in Limpopo are operational. Neither has met the accreditation criteria required by the Department of Higher Education and therefore, potential students for the EMS services are forced to travel to alternative provinces for training,” added Wilson.
She indicated that Medivac helicopters, which should have one Advanced Medical Practitioner on board to fly patients to hospitals, are released with emergency medical personnel, which do not meet the requirements as laid out in the Act.
“In Limpopo province, where medical legal claims already run into billions, the situation has reached crisis point. Confidence in MEC Mashego and the Department of Health in Limpopo has all but disappeared. The DA will take a stand against the abysmal state of healthcare administered to our poor and vulnerable citizens and will ensure that every possible action is taken to protect them,” concluded Wilson.
