Public asked not to abuse healthcare staff
JOBURG – After noting incidences of abuse towards healthcare workers, The Gauteng Department of Health has asked patients and their relatives not to abuse health professionals.
Patients and their relatives have been asked to not verbally or physically abuse health professionals when seeking medical treatment at clinics or hospitals in Gauteng.
The Gauteng Department of Health made the appeal after noting several incidents of abuse towards staff at healthcare facilities across the province.
“The department has noted with concern a number of incidents where health workers had experience unruly behaviour from patients’ escorts,” the department said in a statement.
“As a department, we are doing our best to protect health professionals, patients and other members of the public visiting public healthcare facilities,” said the department’s spokesperson Prince Hamnca.
“At the same time, we are calling on members of our communities to assist in ensuring that our health facilities remain places of healing.”
The department appealed to all those who sought healthcare at its facilities to co-operate with health workers because such behaviour could jeopardise the care of patients who need critical medical care, said Hamnca.
In recent years, the department had appointed complaints managers in all its hospitals in a bid to improve the quality of service offered.
The department was urging patients and the public to lodge a complaint if they were unhappy with the quality of care or service they had received.
According to the department, complaints managers were mandated to deal with every aspect of complaints excluding legal claims or demand for monetary compensation.
If the complaint had resulted in injury or mortality it would be reviewed by medical experts who sit in the Serious Adverse Events Committee.
Complaints could be lodged with the complaints manager or the office of the hospital CEO or facility manager at a clinic or community health centre.
Alternatively complainants could call the 24-hour call centre on 0860 011 000.
Meanwhile, a nurse was assaulted at Joburg’s Helen Joseph Hospital, the health department said.
“The Gauteng health department has beefed up security measures at the Helen Joseph Hospital following the brutal attack on a phlebotomist nurse,” Hamnca said
“Since the occurrence of this incident, the hospital management has taken precautionary measures by availing extra security personnel to escort health workers who need to move around the hospital.”
The attack took place at the Wits University-controlled area in the hospital on 29 August.
The department did not provide any further details about the incident but said that victim was recovering well and was expected to be discharged soon.
The department continued appealing to the public to assist it and the police in ensuring the safety and protection of health workers.
