In the 2020/21 budget speech on Thursday, the MEC for health, Sasekani Manzini, said the department had to date vaccinated 63 336 elderly people out of the 121 858 who had registered.
She said 21 110 healthcare workers were vaccinated during the Sisonke Open Programme, which was phase 1 of the roll-out programme.
“The impact of Covid-19 has brought great sadness and disappointment. The department had 2 942 employees infected with Covid-19 and 59 of them passed away. May their souls rest in peace.
“We are busy with phase 2 of the vaccination programme and are prioritising citizens 60 years and above. We are targeting 333 001 of our elderly people over 60.
“The department appreciates the support from the executive council through the provincial command council that has led us to successfully resolve and overcome some of the challenges that came with the efforts to the fight against Covid-19.”
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Manzini said despite the pandemic, ten out of 32 hospitals achieved the ideal status for self-assessment, and 96 out of 289 primary healthcare facilities achieved an ideal status.
The department is gearing itself for public health establishments in the province to be ready and accredited for National Health Insurance through the National Health Quality Improvement Plan.
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“Let me appreciate the endless efforts of all staff in my department that continuously rendered services despite the difficult position they found themselves in.” Manzini said the department was allocated a total budget of R16 204 083 000 for the 2021/22 financial year.
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