KABOKWENI – On Friday the staff, including of nurses, doctors, cleaners and admin officers some in uniforms and others in NEHAWU’s red T-shirts chanted slogans voicing out their demands in the different hospital’s floors, the admin area and the entrance to the hospital.
Public toilets were a nightmare.
Mpumalanga News learnt that patients from hospitals including Tonga, Shongwe, Matibiti, Mapulaneng, Tintswalo , Matikwane and even those from Rob Ferreira ‘s catchment areas are referred to the hospital, yet it has a staff shortage. This newspaper also learnt that some patients who can’t walk to fetch their food from the kitchen, allegedly starve because there is no one to distribute food in the wards.
“We are planning a total shutdown this coming Tuesday and we want the department to explain to us as to who are they against, because when we work overtime, we are told Themba hospital is on overdraft,” they say.
Dumisane Malamule, spokesperson for the department says the department is aware of the hospital’s grievances and there is a shortage of staff. “We have met with them last week and have since deployed a task team to analyse their organogram since they still fall under the KaNgwane Organogram. We will check from the organogram the number of vacant posts and present our analysis to the union on February 21. From there we will have a way forward,” he says.
Malamule says the department is working around the clock to avoid the proposed complete shutdown at the hospital.
Also read: Patients not helped due to water crises at Themba Hospital
