‘Patients die while waiting’ – Lists for surgeries at Joburg hospitals continue to grow

While the cause of the fire that damaged Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital and contributed to the current backlog is still unanswered, the waiting list to undergo surgery at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital in Soweto continues to grow.

Yesterday, Gauteng department of health spokesperson Motalatale Modiba said the department could not comment on a leaked police forensic report about the cause of fire being arson because it had not seen it yet.

Democratic Alliance Gauteng shadow health MEC Jack Bloom said it was unacceptable that the prolonged closure of the Charlotte Maxeke hospital trauma unit and the nonfunctioning of Bheki Mlangeni Hospital theatres were blamed for the long waiting lists.

ALSO READ: Charlotte Maxeke hospital fire was arson – report

Bloom said the number of patients waiting for surgery at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital had jumped from 7 288 last year, to 11 194 after some patients were told they would have to wait until December 2026 for an operation.

“There are 3 394 cataract patients who will wait a year to regain their sight. The worst waiting time is for 1 777 people who need hip and knee replacements and will wait for four-and-a-half years. And 1 304 children will wait six months for surgery. In the case of prostate cancer, the delay can be life-threatening as 243 patients will wait for 24 to 36 months for surgery,” Bloom said.

‘Patients die while waiting for surgeries’

Many patients will also have to wait months before they are diagnosed and placed on the waiting list, he said.

“Some waiting lists only get shorter because patients die while waiting.”

Gauteng MEC for health Dr Nomathemba Mokgethi said the long waiting lists were due to inadequate theatre time and the nonavailability of post-operative intensive care unit (ICU) and high care unit beds. Other delays included infrastructure issues, such as nonfunctioning autoclaves, power outages and dysfunctional boilers.

Mokgethi said the waiting list for surgeries was being managed through various interventions to ensure all patients requiring surgeries were assisted accordingly.

“Various interventions are being used to tackle the backlogs. These include dedicated weekend surgeries, an increase in arthroplasty days to three days a week for hip replacement and other joint surgeries,” she said.

Mokgethi said the department of infrastructure and property management was attending to ventilation issues affecting the theatre to allow minor surgeries to resume at the facility.

“The facility is working around the clock to attend to as many cases as possible to reduce the backlog,” she said.

Medical expert Dr Angelique Coetzee said patients not getting operations was a dire problem.

“One of biggest issues is the lack of ICU beds, especially in a place like Baragwanath hospital, when operating on someone and they need treatment in ICU or high care, if you don’t have the beds then you can’t operate on the patient,” she said.

ALSO READ: Charlotte Maxeke casualty’s failure to open a sign of ‘deep incompetence’

Coetzee said it was shocking to imagine all vehicle accident patients, heart attack victims or patients with severe diseases will be assisted with only 30 beds available at the hospital.

“People will die if they can’t get the operations,” she said. Coetzee said the department needed to be honest and open about the problems. “It is time we look at the private sector and do public-private partnerships to work together.”

– marizkac@citizen.co.za