Hospitals placed under strain during KZN unrest
In most hospitals, including Life Mount Edgecombe Hospital, staff absenteeism had been recorded as a result of road closures and staff not being able to get to the hospital.
THE unrest and protest action placed enormous strain on the already pressurised healthcare system.
This is according to two hospital heads in Mount Edgecombe and uMhlanga who spoke to Northglen News last week.
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“Our emergency and trauma units were pushed to the limits as the nurses and healthcare professionals, already battling with the increased number of patients requiring ventilation and critical care, were contending with patients who sustained injuries during the violent protests,” said Craig Koekemoer, Business Operational Executive, Life Healthcare.
In most hospitals, including Life Mount Edgecombe Hospital, staff absenteeism had been recorded as a result of road closures and staff not being able to get to the hospital.
However, the hospital made alternative arrangements in the facilities most impacted.
“In some cases, SAPS assisted to make sure staff had a safe passage to work, particularly in our outlying hospitals such as Life Mount Edgecombe Hospital. In an effort to free up critical resources, we suspended all non-emergency surgery and closed our vaccination sites in the hotspots,” said Koekemoer.
Chief executive officer of Netcare, Dr Richard Friedland, said contingency plans were timeously implemented to ensure patients could continue to benefit from healthcare services amid violent protests in some parts of the country.
“Unfortunately, the violence in certain parts of KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng placed additional pressure on both the public and private healthcare systems. We experienced some challenges due to staff shortages as a result of staff not being able to reach their place of work, however Netcare’s hospitals remained open throughout the country. We treated a number of people for protest-related injuries, which placed further pressure on an already constrained healthcare system, including emergency medical services,” he added.
He said the healthcare group had also sent a team of specialised trauma nurses to KwaZulu-Natal and transported urgent medication to the region.
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Northglen News requested comment from Busamed Gateway Private Hospital, but none was forthcoming at the time of publishing.
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