Resident recalls six hour wait for a doctor at Seshego Hospital

POLOKWANE – “I don’t know why this kind of negligence is still happening in our province. I thought things would be better and sick people would be treated quickly upon arrival during the pandemic, but I guess I was wrong.”

These are the words of Tumelo Mamabolo who spoke to BONUS about what he says is the unacceptable treatment he and his family have had to endure at the Seshego Hospital. Mamabolo, who resides in Seshego Zone 8, explained that he had to call an ambulance for his mother, Thembi (70), who was in pain, and after no response, the family made arrangements for another mode of transport.

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“When the ambulance team answered they told us there were only two ambulances at the station and were both unavailable. Instead, we made plans for private transportation to get my mother to the Seshego Hospital. Upon our arrival at the hospital at 16:00, we asked for assistance to get her out of the car but the staff looked at us and did not offer any care, until we took her out of the car ourselves,” he explained.

What transpired, Mamabolo says, can only be described as “disappointing service”.

“Entering the hospital, we found some of the staff busy on their cellphones and no one was willing to help. We were eventually helped at 22:00, which meant my mother had gone for six hours without assistance. We were all told to wait outside but received no updates from the nurses on what our mother’s diagnosis was. My sister told us that they did not want to give her any information as to what was wrong with my mother, even the doctor could not tell us what was wrong,” he said.

Mamabolo confirmed that his mother had been admitted to the hospital for a week and was discharged on Friday, 11 September, but despite that, he says the family is left with more questions than answers as to what was wrong with her.

“Something has to be done regarding the service received at the hospital because someone might die due to their negligence,” Mamabolo said.

The Spokesperson for the MEC of Health, Thilivhali Muavha told BONUS they will take the matter to management to investigate.

“All patients are supposed to be our first priority and how the hospital staff allegedly treated them upon arrival was not professional. As much as the department condemns poor service and treatment at any hospitals, patients should be advised that should they experience a similar incident, to identify the nurses. In this way, we can deal with complaints constructively since it is not anonymous,” Muavha concluded.