VRYHEID KZN: Minister Blade Nzimande visits Vryheid vaccine centre
It is not enough for us to be told or shown pictures in Pretoria on how things are going in other provinces and places. We need to come and see for ourselves, and actually witness the people who are working in that particular facility.
National Minister of Higher Education, Science & Innovation Dr Blade Nzimande, District Mayor Thulasizwe Buthelezi and Mayor Mncedisi Maphisa visited Vryheid District Hospital last week. Programme director for the day, Lucky Masuku, mentioned that the minister’s visit was part of his ministerial oversight, following Cabinet’s deployment of ministers and deputy ministers as ‘District Champions’ of various municipalities. They were visiting the Zululand District for the third time, as the minister chose to visit Vryheid District Hospital. The CEO of Vryheid District Hospital, Fikile Ngema, gave a brief presentation about the hospital. In her presentation, she said, “Regarding access to healthcare services, we have a 24-hour access to patients and currently the hospital has 16 feeder clinics, including a new centre with three non-medical sites. There are two clinics that provide a 24-hour service, three mobile clinics that cover 104 mobile points. We are in one of the 22 wards in Abaqulusi, which is Ward 8, and among the 22 wards, the most deprived ward is Ward 3. The hospital provides community services throughout nine ward-based outreaches. The facility has 338 beds. We are a level 1 district hospital, we serve a population of 22,431 and the whole area is classified as urban – there are some areas that are ‘deep rural’. Long ago, we used to also serve eDumbe Municipality, but now they have their own hospital. The Covid-19 background: Abaqulusi Municipality reported its first case in Zululand in May 2020. The district’s total deaths during the first wave were 28 and the total recoveries in the first wave were 560. The total staff tested positive for Covid-19 were 240 and unfortunately there were four deaths. Confirmed cases for Vryheid – 3067, with 2853 recoveries, Siloah – 33, active 13 and deaths 190. One should indicate that within the district, a site was identified to assist with Covid-19 patients, which is the Siloah unit, and that is a 12-bed isolation centre. The hospital was built in 1934 or so, and was for a very small population. As we speak, there has been a huge population growth and there are units that are really small – like the casualty ward, OPD and maternity ward. There is also a huge challenge of hospital connectivity. Now and then, the problem with our connectivity is that we cannot access our emails. As the hospital, we managed to serve the four other municipalities with vaccinations. The total number of health workers vaccinated in the first three days were 1042. We also have a flu clinic that is up and running, where people are getting screened and identified accordingly.” Minister Nzimande mentioned that as the government, one of the things they are summoned to do and check is the vaccination issue. “It is not enough for us to be told or shown pictures in Pretoria on how things are going in other provinces and places. We need to come and see for ourselves, and actually witness the people who are working in that particular facility – hear them directly from the horse’s mouth and see the things that still need to be done. We work closely together with Minister Mkhize and other members of the Cabinet to ensure that the vaccinations are done or executed properly. I thank everyone who is doing this work, particularly those who work with Covid-19 patients – our front-line workers and other health organisations for risking your lives. It is no joke to work with Covid-19 infected patients. We really thank and appreciate you, and hope that you continue to work safely in the coming phases,” the minister said. ALSO READ:Vryheid Hospital responds to medication shortage concerns
