Sharpeville clinic roof collapses

According to Pitso, the clinic was closed after the ceiling collapsed about three weeks ago as a result of an overpopulation of birds that have been making use of the attic: “There are a lot of birds here at the clinic. These birds have also been leaving droppings all over the ceiling. We believe that this might have been the cause of the collapse of the ceiling. We are in talks with the SPCA to see how they can help with the situation.” The collapse happened at night when there were no people on that side of the clinic. Pitso says the estimated period for renovation is three months, after which the clinic will again be open to residents. Pitso states that there was also an outcry from residents about privacy when they had to go to a community hall for medical assistance: “Patients complained about not having privacy at the hall. The hall does not have facilities to take care of medicines as they should be kept at a certain temperature.

“All patients making use of the clinic must please go to Retswelapele clinic in Phelandaba and Tshepiso Clinic as those are the clinics that have been chosen. Transport has been strictly arranged for patients who are very sickly and are not able to go to the other clinics. The transport will be taking those patients to the other clinics.” Pitso added that other medical facilities residents can use during this time are Kopanong Hospital in Vereeniging and the Johan Heyns Clinic in Vanderbijlpark: “The medical staff have been deployed to other clinics where they will be assisting with the extra number of people that will be coming in. We will also be taking mobile clinics to the clinics. These will be used by Sharpeville residents during this time.”