Gauteng Health Department receives R5.2 mill PPE donation from Transnet

A R5.2-million donation of personal protective equipment (PPE) from Transnet will benefit Gauteng health care workers who are on the frontline in the fight against Covid-19.

The donation was made on Saturday (18 April) in answer to the government’s call for businesses, non-government organisations and individuals to assist the Health Department to increase its resource capacity in anticipation of a surge in the number of coronavirus cases in South Africa.

Yesterday, Gauteng’s number of confirmed Covid-19 cases exceeded the 1 000 mark. Gauteng remains the epicentre of South Africa’s epidemic with a total of 1 018 confirmed cases (37 per cent of SA’s cases), and 6 Covid-19 related deaths.

Transnet’s donation to the Gauteng Health Department comprises 18 500 PPE kits, including 5 000 litres of hand sanitiser, 2 000 pairs of protective coveralls, 2 000 facemasks, 5 000 litres of germicidal hand soap, 1 000 disposable sleeve protectors, latex gloves, and infrared digital thermometers.

The PPE, which will help minimise exposure to infections, will be shared with hospitals in Gauteng. However, most of the equipment will be used at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital (CHBAH) were the handover of the donation took place today (April 18).

CHBAH’s 6 197 staff members serving an average of nearly a million patients annually, including 100 000 inpatients, providing healthcare services to residents of Soweto and its surrounding areas. It has 2 680 useable beds.

This week, Gauteng also received a donation of 30 000 PPE units from the Bank of China.

Read more here: Covid-19: Gauteng Health Department aided by big donations in fight against coronavirus

PPE donated by Transnet was procured from five small medium and micro-sized businesses, according to the Gauteng Department of Health, which expressed its gratitude for the generous donations.

“This kind of assistance comes at a time when the country is joining hands to make sure our people are protected against Covid-19, particularly our healthcare workers. We have always maintained that the health system in Gauteng must be patient-centred, clinician-led and stakeholder-driven,” said MEC Bandile Masuku from the CHBAH this morning.