Nehawu strike chaos hits Grey’s Hospital in Pietermaritzburg

Patients’ recovery in government hospitals will be further compromised on Thurday as the public servants strike over wages moves into day four.

On Wednesday three patients died at Grey’s Hospital as the National Education Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) members continued blockading entrances to the facility with burning tyres and rubble.

Referral patients from as far as Newcastle, Vryheid and Ladysmith were left stranded on the forecourt of the hospital with no one to administer treatment and process their paperwork.

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These patients, all needing attention for various medical conditions, were brought in in three buses.

Those who spoke to The Witness said the department had no contingency plans as services in hospitals remained interrupted.

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Patients affected
Car crash survivor Mxolisi Mbuyazi from eDumbe said he travelled the better part of the morning to reach Grey’s Hospital for a referral to King Edward Hospital.

I’m supposed to be transferred to King Edward. I’m in excruciating pain to be sitting here with no medication or medical attention. I have fractured bones and head injuries. I left home in the early hours of this morning only to be told that we will be sent back without medical attention.
He was injured on Saturday but could only receive a referral on Tuesday.

A frail Muzi Ntombela from Emadadeni, Newcastle, told The Witness that his experience on Wednesday was worse than the years he has had to battle with an eye condition.

“I don’t know what happened to my eye but I ended up losing it after many hospital admissions. I’m supposed to undergo an operation today but we’ve just been told that we’re going back home. The department is failing us poor [people] because it should be a standard procedure to have efficient staff members in place during emergencies including during strike actions by employees.

The striking workers are endangering our lives, and the department of health is failing in its duty to provide healthcare to the communities. If that was not the case then there would be skeleton workers attending to patients
More patients
Another patient due to undergo an eye operation Walter Mabaso shared Ntombela’s sentiments.

“What is the department talking about when they refer to skeleton staff? Are those not the people who should be attending to emergencies? We will have to return home and wait for further referral dates,” said Mabaso.

He also questioned the inaction of the police and the legitimacy of the strike. He said hospital entrances should not be blocked and workers who want to go to work and patients should not be intimidated.

Wage issue
The provincial health department and the unions have not reached middle ground on the wage issue which has been brewing since 2021, and the latter has vowed to continue bringing services to a standstill if the government does not give in to their demands for a 10% wage increase.

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Several healthcare facilities around the province were under lock and key on Wednesday with lack of action on the part of the police, who instead directed traffic.

The provincial police had not commented by the time of publication. The provincial health department did not respond to specific questions seeking clarity on its contingency plans to safeguard the wellbeing of the patients.

The department further did not respond to the question of what it was doing to save patients from pain and possible loss of life if the strike was illegal.

It also did not comment on the failure of its backup plan to save 30-year-old Thandokuhle Mlotshwa, who died along with her unborn baby in Northdale Hospital on Tuesday evening.

In response to the written questions, MEC Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu said the workers’ demands fell outside of the jurisdiction of the provincial government. “It becomes very difficult to negotiate in our different corners on matters that are on a national level, and at the level of the bargaining chamber.

Allow healthcare workers to get to work so they can save lives; and do not stop patients from coming into our health facilities because if you continue to do so, you will have blood on your hands.
We expected that the leadership of the unions would understand that the majority of healthcare workers are classified under essential services, and therefore, they cannot not be at work. But it becomes even worse when you have health workers who are stopping patients from accessing healthcare services,” said Simelane-Zulu in a statement.

Nehawu
Nehawu secretary in the Harry Gwala region Mazwi Ngubane said the strike will continue until the concerned parties put an acceptable offer on the table.

The bargaining council has subpoenaed the union and the employer so everything will depend on the outcomes of that meeting. We are very concerned about the loss of life.
“The community is not our enemy, but the government is. We apologise that people get caught up in the crossfire. We are really sad, as here at Grey’s Hospital three patients died yesterday,” said Ngubane.