No shortage of medication at Hazyview Clinic, says department
The provincial Department of Health said the clinic does not have a shortage of medication for primary healthcare, and the clinic was confirmed to have all the necessary meds.
According to the Department of Health (DoH), claims that the Hazyview Clinic is short on medication are not true.
Some community members claimed the clinic does not have enough medication, but the DoH’s spokesperson, Dumisane Malamule, said it had consulted with its management that said they stocked most of the medication needed for primary healthcare.
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“The facility indicated that they have treatments. In case the prescribed medication is not available, a substitute treatment is given. Medication such as antibiotics for chest infections are available. Allergex syrup and tablets are there, as well as Betadine ointment and solution. I am mentioning this because of the allegations that the above medications are not available, but we can confirm that we have it from the warehouse and the clinic also has it,” Malamule said.
Meanwhile, some of the people who complained about the shortage of the medication accused the staff of giving children under the age of seven tablets instead of syrup. Others said they were referred to another clinic for the flu, wounds and allergies.
One of the claimants who wanted to remain anonymous said: “I took my kids to the clinic a week ago because they had flu. I was in the queue for two hours, but when the nurses attended to us, they told me they did not have flu medication and sent me to another clinic.”
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Another woman said she was forced to use her grant money to buy ointment for her six-year-old daughter’s wounds. “The clinic gave me some tablets, because they did not have syrup. When I tried to give them to her, she couldn’t swallow them. I had no choice; I had to use the money with which I was supposed to buy food to buy the medication,” she said.
Yet another complainant said the clinic used to be one of the best in the area and had all the medication, but that has recently changed.
She had been to the clinic on several occasions, but had to return home without medication because they did not have it in their storeroom. They are calling on the DoH to intervene so the clinic can provide all necessary medication needed at a primary healthcare facility.
