Tembisa Hospital CEO suspended after damning health ombud report

The CEO of Tembisa Provincial Tertiary Hospital, Dr Lekopane Mogaladi, has been served with a letter from the Gauteng health department. 

This after a report was released by Health Ombudsman Professor Malegapuru Makgoba earlier this week into the treatment and death of Shonisani Lethole at the hospital. 

Lethole died in June 2020, after being admitted to Tembisa Hospital with severe Covid-19-related symptoms. 

It was found that for 100 hours and 54 minutes, Lethole was not fed, and that he died without knowing his Covid-19 results. 

ALSO READ: Shonisani Lethole: SAMA calls for action against those responsible

South African Medical Association (Sama) chair Dr Angelique Coetzee said scenarios similar to what happened to Lethole were repeated throughout the country, and that the management of Tembisa Hospital should be held to account. 

“We cannot continually be looking at these types of incidents as being isolated. We have reported many times about similar conditions elsewhere and about the need for urgent intervention.

“Unless this intervention occurs and rapidly, we fear another case such as this will occur,” she said.

Mogaladi has five working days to make representations. 

ALSO READ: ‘Neglected’ Shonisani Lethole’s body was found in ‘rigor-mortis’ stage – health ombud

He said earlier that the findings against him – which included that he signed inaccurate and misleading reports given to then-Gauteng health MEC Dr Bandile Masuku and the ombud – weren’t accurate.

The ombud also found that Mogaladi failed to report missing clinical notes to the police, as is required by law.

Gauteng health department said it would not be taking the report on review.

“The Department wishes to reiterate its commitment to implementing the commendations of the report by the Health Ombuds into the circumstances surrounding the care and death of Mr Shonisani Lethole at Tembisa Hospital within legal prescripts,” the department said. 

Compiled by Nica Richards. Background reporting by News24 Wire.

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