Sheppie Hospital beds stand empty as water crisis deepens in Port Shepstone

The coast’s water crisis has left Port Shepstone Regional Hospital in a state of upheaval.

ALSO READ: Elderly suffer eight months with no water

Photographs sent to the Herald  reveal a partially deserted hospital, and reports from inside  say that the clinic and many other hospital departments are closed.

The Herald contacted Port Shepstone Hospital PRO, Phumza Morai for comment. Ms Morai said that while she would do her best to provide clarity, she would also forward the newspaper’s queries to province, as per the hospital’s media protocol.

The newspaper also sent an email to Agiza Hlongwane, KZN Department of Health: Deputy Director: Content Development, Speech Writing, Media Liaison and to France Zama, spokesman for Ugu District Municipality, neither of whom had responded at the time of writing.

In a statement released by the Democratic Alliance earlier today (Friday), the party’s spokesman on health, Dr Rishigen Viranna, said the party had been reliably informed that Port Shepstone Hospital had been given the go-head to transfer patients to Durban, postpone clinic appointments and discharge patients who could manage at home.

This as the facility faces a crisis following an ongoing lack of water across wide sections of the South Coast,  and this week’s Ugu Municipality water shut down for maintenance purposes.

“While the DA welcomes any form of repair aimed at improving the supply of water to Ugu’s half a million residents, the reality that this is a facility which houses people who are ill and this cannot be compromised under any circumstances.”

ALSO READ: Elderly suffer eight months with no water

Dr Viranna said that the fact that the country and the province were in the midst of a Coronavirus pandemic meant that constant water supply – particularly when it came to healthcare facilities – was a must.

“According to our professional source within the hospital, the facility operated with reservoir water from Tuesday evening. On Wednesday night tankers did four deliveries but by yesterday morning the hospital’s reserve tank was at zero. While another tanker delivered water at 8am yesterday, this apparently didn’t help much. Another four water tankers also delivered water yesterday afternoon but this will not be enough for the hospital to function normally.”

While water supply to most clinical areas had automatically shut down – with no end in sight – hospital management also claim they are being sent from pillar to post, said the DA.

“Despite contacting Ugu municipality officials about the problem, they have had little assistance. Their call to the tanker drivers directly established that they were trying to locate another water source as the initial source was exhausted,” said Dr Viranna.

Port Shepstone Hospital, along with all health facilities in the Ugu District, has faced a long struggle with water and maintaining quality health services. This had led to adverse events, delayed operations, patient transfers and poor quality care, he said.

ALSO READ: Murchison Hospital without water – ‘not my problem’ says Health MEC

Dr Viranna added the DA had succeeded in summoning  Ugu District Municipality management to appear in front of the national parliamentary Cogta portfolio committee later today (Friday) to explain their poor performance, financial crisis and failure to provide water. They will be also be forced to explain their lack of contingency plans for vital health facilities during their maintenance drives.

For this immediate crisis, the DA called for the direct intervention of KZN Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu. “She must now ensure the smooth transfer of critical patients and the supply of additional water resources to Port Shepstone Hospital and other critical health facilities.”

“We also reiterate our ongoing call to Premier Sihle Zikalala to intervene by placing the Ugu District Municipality under provincial administration.”

HAVE YOUR SAY

Like the South Coast Herald’s Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and Instagram