Posts tagged with 'Healthcare'

 

R6bn needed to renovate Gauteng hospitals – National Health Plan may be on ice

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It will cost the state more than R6 billion to complete 32 hospitals’ safety rating. The decline and deterioration of hospitals is particularly seen in electrical installations, fire protection equipment, elevator regulations and storage facilities.

The condition can be attributed to contractors who do not deliver quality work and poor maintenance programs. There is concern that none of the hospitals will be able to be part of the government’s National Health Insurance Program as they are not accredited by the Office of Health Standards.

Meanwhile, Minister Tito Mboweni indicated in the mini-budget that the Health Plan is off track due to the extremely poor state of the South African economy.

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FF Plus intervenes at Steve Biko Hospital after patient’s emergency cry when he was left without food and water for ten days

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The FF Plus intervened at Steve Biko Hospital in Pretoria after a patient called for help from the FF Plus in desperation.

Last Friday, ironically, during a session of Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Health, the FF Plus heard firsthand about a patient’s shocking experience at this hospital.

The patient (whose name is withheld) was broken and the hospital left him without food or water for ten days because he had to undergo surgery to re-attach the arm and the procedure was postponed day after day due to an overcrowded theater. Meanwhile, the arm began to turn black and the person was in severe pain.

To make matters worse, he was in Ga-Rankuwa Hospital for two days, where he also received no treatment. He was admitted to Steve Biko Hospital on October 2

The FF Plus was informed about the incident at 09:15 and immediately informed the chair of the portfolio committee, the Gauteng MEC for health as well as the Gauteng department of health about the inciden
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Only 44 inspectors to cover 4184 hospitals and clinics in South Africa – the reason why many hospitals are in such a state of disrepair and why there is little to no service delivery

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The Office of Health Standards Compliance has admitted that it does not have enough inspectors to inspect the approximately 4184 hospitals and clinics in South Africa due to a lack of money and other resources.

The FF Plus was shocked to learn that, according to the Office’s announcement, there are only 44 inspectors who have to do all the work in the entire country.

As a result, many hospitals and clinics are simply not inspected to ensure that they comply with the legal requirements for delivering safe and high-quality health care to South Africans. This institution falls under the National Health Act (12 of 2013).

This explains why the infrastructure at hospitals is in such a poor condition and why equipment is not maintained or in working order. There is no money available to fill the vacant positions.

Even though the Office tries its very best to get to most of the hospitals and clinics, it is obviously an impossible task. During the 2018/19 financia
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184 staff members of the Gauteng Health Services own private businesses and trade with government departments

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It has been revealed that  184 staff  members of the Gauteng Health Services  own private businesses that trade with government departments including the Health Department.

These services include medical supplies, food, publications, funerals and even emergency services.

Unconfirmed reports state that staff are sometimes in the “good position” to decide for themselves that the Health Service will make use of their services.

The astronomical figures in question apparently explain why the Department remains financially in the red, while the staff not only receive salary, but also realize astronomical profits with the delivery of goods and services that could be purchased directly from the Health Services.

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The doctors of the future! Not a single student from 5 universities, including UCT and Wits, passed their surgery exam

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The Colleges of Medicine of South Africa (CMSA) says it is hoping that an investigation aimed at establishing why so many students failed the recent Fellowship of the College of Surgeons (FCS) exams will be wrapped up before the end of the year.

The CMSA started the investigation after only 15 of the 46 candidates who wrote the exam passed.

All of the candidates from the University of the Witwatersrand, University of Cape Town (UCT), University of Pretoria, Walter Sisulu University and University of the Free State failed the exam.

Only candidates from the Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) and Stellenbosch University had passed.

‘Fair paper’

“We are concerned about the low pass rate – 44% – but we have instituted an investigation to look at the challenges students faced in the run up to the exams,” said CMSA president Dr Flavia Senkubuge.

She said an internal moderation was conducted and students said it w
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Launching NHI is not going to improve healthcare – SA health services could face a shortfall of 400,000 nurses by 2025

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The government’s intention to launch a National Health Insurance already appears to be incoherent. Apart from the only two days the members were given to an advisory committee to determine which medical conditions would be covered, another “massive problem” has now emerged:

Prospective nursing staff are hampered by the accreditation of Institutions where they had to be trained, apparently placed on the long track. This means that no nursing staff will be trained next year. Currently, there is an estimated ratio of 1 nurse to 1,000 patients nationwide and this ratio will continue to deteriorate.

Another problem is students who want to be trained as nurses for Intensive care, neonatal care and pediatrics, trauma, and casualty posts. Maintaining our current primary health care is already showing serious shortcomings and will now be further undermined.

If the Minister of Health, Zwelini Mkhizi remains apathetic to this problem, there may be a shortage of 400,000 n
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Hospitals held up due to shortage of basic medical supplies – ANC regime want to implement NHI, but is currently unable to manage hospitals

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Due to a lack of basic medical supplies, all non-emergency operations were discontinued at the Johannesburg Hospital.

The problems have been going on for weeks and doctors now have to “beg” for medical supplies at neighboring hospitals to deal with serious cases.

The Gauteng Health ministry has confirmed that non-emergency surgery for some patients had to be rescheduled at Charlotte Maxeke hospital in Johannesburg due to a shortage of medical supplies.

This was in response to a statement from the Democratic Alliance’s spokesperson on health, Jack Bloom, who said about 20 patients had been told that their operations could not go ahead. Kwara Kekana, spokesperson for the province’s health MEC, Dr Bandile Masuku, said eight patients were affected by the issue. The patients were all scheduled for arthroplasty.

“There has been a problem for some weeks with procurement at this hospital,” Bloom said in his statement.

Specifically, equipment such as suct
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Medical funds are becoming increasingly unreasonable – People will now have to pay more for towards their medical aid premium, this while state hospitals are plunged into chaos

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Although it has become a common practice for medical schemes to adjust their rates upwards every year, there are concerns that they will increase significantly for 2020.

Medical costs in South Africa have skyrocketed while the state hospitals are in chaos and no one can dare to be admitted.

The problems of those who do not have a medical aid are far worse than those who now have to accept a sharp rise in rates.

Of the schemes, rates increase by up to 11%, which has become so high for many members of a scheme that it is unaffordable.

Younger people can afford to only take out a hospital plan as a package, but the older people get, the more they need a comprehensive package, which is where the financial bottleneck comes from.
Discovery Health Medical Scheme (DHMS) members will pay significantly more for their medical coverage in 2020.

DHMS’s weighted average premium increase of 9.5% for 2020 does not bode well for premium increases from other medical sche
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God Help us! No health care facility in Gauteng controlled by ANC regime could pass safety audit – Now the very same regime wants to enforce a National Health Insurance Plan across SA

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No healthcare facility in Gauteng was able to successfully pass a safety audit that complies with the Occupational Safety Act of SA (OHSA),according to a statement issued by DA Health spokesman Jack Bloom on Thursday. This means that all hospitals and clinics in Gauteng pose a safety risk to staff and patients.

It ranges from overcrowding to emergency departments, leaky roofs, non-functional air conditioning and non-standard kitchens.

This highlights how unprepared the state is for the planned National Health Insurance to be introduced.

Informed sources believe it is better not to go to the hospitals, as the risk of just being further affected or even die, has become too great.

“This information about the shock state of healthcare facilities is revealed by Gauteng Health MEC Bandile Masuku in a written response to questions in the Gauteng Legislature,” Bloom said.

The following facilities performed the worst:

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ANC is bragging about the new Health Plan initiative- no mention of how hospitals’ chaos will be transformed into effective health institutions

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The ANC’s Minister of Health, Zweli Mkhize, again explained how the so-called National Health Plan will be approached.

Without even releasing new information to the media, he even quoted the terrorist leader of the past, Mandela.

The talk of how the Plan will lead to completeness over a period of seven years is all that has been said, without pointing to the possibility that the country’s economy may fall even further, which could hamper the phasing-in of phases.

No indication has been given how much it will cost taxpayers, or at what stage the taxes will increase to fund the R400bn it will pay annually.

According to Zweli Mkhize, new appointments will be made during the seven-year period to manage the excessive administrative burden.

He says a cross-subsidy system will apply, which means those who are healthy and still economically active will bear the burden of paying the expenses of the unemployed and the elderly gua
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