Uproar over ‘appalling’ condition of Limpopo hospital

The appalling condition of a Limpopo hospital has raised a brouhaha between the provincial health department and the Democratic Alliance (DA). The criticism comes after the DA visited the hospital over allegations raised by aggrieved residents and patients.

“We are deeply concerned by the state of neglect at WF Knobel Hospital in Moletji following an oversight inspection by the Limpopo Legislature health portfolio committee last week,” DA member of the Limpopo Legislature, Risham Maharaj said yesterday.

“The hospital is understaffed and this has only been compounded by the fact that there are currently 11 staff members on suspension.” Maharaj said it was unclear why so many people were suspended and what they were suspended for. “But it is clear that these suspensions are hugely impacting on the services of the hospital,” he said.

Maharaj said some of the other matters of concern included that the pharmacy did not have a working cold room where drugs could be kept.

“There also seems to be no clear service plan for the maintenance of the medical equipment,” Maharaj said.

“There is only one X-ray machine and it is currently not working properly.”

As if that was not enough, he said, the ambulances at the hospital did not have electrocardiography (ECG) machines and other vital equipment. Maharaj said most of the ambulances have clocked well over 100 000km and need urgent attention as they were not well maintained. The hospital had also no obstetrics ambulances which, he said, compromised the service that could be offered to pregnant women and their babies in emergencies.

“The building is also dilapidated with the roof and walls needing urgent attention. This hospital needs to be prioritised to ensure services to the surrounding villages and communities,” he said.

“The sad reality is that WF Knobel Hospital is not an isolated case and merely highlights the fact that public healthcare in Limpopo is in need of an urgent intervention.”

– news@citizen.co.za

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.