Leaks from the ceiling are rampant at the Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital and risk of further damage is rapidly approaching.
DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Health, Jack Bloom said, “There are leaks in other parts of the hospital and in the parking garages. Sewage is sometimes mixed in as well, causing a foul smell.” Bloom described how some of the leaks are being caused by defects in the structure of the hospital and expressed his dismay at management’s lack of interest.
There are a whole host of issues at the hospital, which have been identified and are:
• Two buckets collect water from leaks in broken ceiling panels on the first level
• Leaks in various rooms in the Ward 256 Paediatric Clinic. A consultation room there is used for storage because of faeces that leaked into it from the ceiling last year. • The intercom was damaged in February last year by water leaks and has still not been fixed
• Last year, surgery had to be stopped in one of the theatres because of leaks outside the Block 3 operating theatres
• Large ceiling panels are missing in Ward 348 Radiation Oncology and a huge bucket is placed underneath to collect water.
Gauteng Department of Health spokesperson Steve Mabona stated that the issue of the leaks is being attended to, he did not however, answer when the leaks will be fixed. “The maintenance team from Department of Infrastructure Development is finalising all the outstanding issues. It should be noted that patient care has not been compromised,” added Mabona.
In 2012 there was a report on structural defects at the Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital that warned that the X-ray department should be evacuated as it could collapse. The report identified structural defects on the fifth floor of the building and recommended R50 million worth of urgent repairs, but the province’s chief engineer Tsepo Matekane, had deemed it not necessary.
In a previous article in November last year Northcliff Melville Times reported that the government spokesperson Mbangwa Xaba had said, “The investigation report dated 6 February 2012 claimed that there are structural defects on the entire floor housing the X-ray department. The severity of the defects were said to be more pronounced in an area under the X-ray department,” explained Xaba.
He further indicated that they had assessed the area and had concluded that portions of the fifth floor slab had deflected excessively but not beyond allowable tolerances.
Mabona commented, “[The report] was analysed by Department’s engineers and three other engineers from National Department of Health. They all found the proposed solutions to be unrealistic and way too excessive.
“We then asked Department of Infrastructure Development engineers to evaluate the floor and they gave the floor a bill of good health,” said Mabona.
Details: DA Gauteng, 082 3334222; Department of Health, 011 355 3469; Department of Infrastructure Development, 011 355 5010.
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