The Limpopo provincial health department has a worrying number of vacant critical medical posts, say opposition parties. Picture: iStock
The Limpopo provincial health department has a worrying number of vacant critical medical posts, say opposition parties.
The province currently has a vacancy rate of 52.1% in health administration, 73.7% in health sciences training, 54.6% in provincial hospital services, 53.3% in district health services, 55.5% in the central hospital service and 43.7% in emergency medical services.
The department does not dispute the facts.
Some observers believe the situation has led to available staff being overworked and this has played a role in the department incurring more than R15 billion in legal claims for medical liability against it.
According to a parliamentary response by the department, vacancy rates in critical occupations as at 31 March 2022 were as follows:
-Specialists – 76.83% (130 posts out of 561 filled);
-Medical officers – 54.57% (1 307 out of 2 877 posts filled);
-Professional nurses – 40.71% (8 754 out of 14 765 posts filled);
-Pharmacists – 16.82% (529 out of 636 posts filled);
-Allied health professionals – 58.03% (1 372 out of 3269 posts filled); and
-Paramedics – 79.51% (25 out of 122 posts filled).
The DA in Limpopo has written to Limpopo health MEC Phophi Ramathuba, asking her to address its concerns.
“These high vacancy rates in the approved organisational structure are simply unacceptable.” said DA Limpopo MPL Risham Maharaj.
Maharaj said most of the posts were vacant due to budget constraints, historical poor financial management and poor working conditions that have caused the loss of skilled medical staff from the department.
He said this had a detrimental effect on the rendering of health services in Limpopo.
“The filling of critical posts within the department should be a priority but is hampered by the need to reduce personnel spending in the province.
The failure to fill critical posts leads to overworking the available staff and it is no surprise that the department has R15 billion in contingent liability due to litigation,” said Maharaj.
“In most of the litigation against the department, health professionals were found to have provided substandard care.
“We believe staff shortages in critical occupations decreased the quality of patient care and the appointment of critical staff must take precedence over the appointment of ineffective senior management and officials in the provincial health department”
In response, the department said it had so far appointed 148 medical officers, 117 professional nurses, 10 speciality nurses and others.
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