SIYABONGA SITHOLE
Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital (RMMCH) is not the only dysfunctional health facility in the province, says the DA spokesperson for health in Gauteng, Jack Bloom.
He was reacting to the report prepared by health ombudsman professor Malegapuru Makgoba, which found Rahima Moosa to be one of the worst-affected hospitals in Gauteng. Makgoba said Health MEC Nomantu Nkomo Ralehoko had inherited a mess due to years of neglect.
Among the ombudsman’s adverse findings was that the hospital was unsafe, unclean and was ridden with administrative and refurbishment problems. Paint peeling off the walls and sewage spills were the order of the day.
"We found that it was true that pregnant mothers were sleeping on the floor. Almost all the people we interviewed confirmed that this was the case and that the CEO did not spend enough time at the hospital," the ombudsman said on Tuesday.
Makgoba has recommended that Rahima Moosa Hospital CEO Dr Nozuko Mkabayi be removed from her position and a disciplinary process be instituted against her. The ombudsman launched an investigation into the facility over a year ago after reports of pregnant women sleeping on the floor emerged.
Some of the recommendations made by the ombudsman include strict recruitment standards for CEOs and the prioritisation of the refurbishment of infrastructure.
Reacting to the damning findings, Bloom said the party welcomed the Health Ombud’s report on the Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital as it lay bare the severe management deficiencies that had led to poor care.
“The ombud declared the facility unsafe… The reality is that cadre deployments are rife in senior posts throughout the department.
“This is why we have so many incompetent people who fail to take action against corruption networks, as we have seen at the Tembisa Hospital,” Bloom said.
He said the DA wanted the ombudsman to conduct a review across all hospital CEOs to assess their competency and use strict criteria in new appointments.
“The DA will closely monitor whether the Department carries out the Health Ombud’s recommendations at Rahima Moosa Hospital and at other hospitals as well,” Bloom added.
Last year, in an interview with Independent Media, the South African Medical Association (Sama) appealed to the government to implement urgent interventions to rescue public health facilities, not only in Gauteng but across the country.
In a broad interview with IOL on the overview of Gauteng health facilities, Sama chairperson Dr Mvuyisi Mzukwa said the public health system was a mess.
“The state of the hospitals in Gauteng, not only in Gauteng but in other provinces as well… is a shambles. That is how I can put it. We are in a crisis. We do need the intervention of the seniors in government, in terms of making sure that people are not left without health-care services," Mzukwa told Independent Media.
Speaking to The Star, Westbury native Lorraine Sampson said people within her community need to be prioritised for jobs, adding that she and many other community members were willing to help restore the image of the hospital.
“I am from the area; they must hire us from the surrounding area of Westbury Newclare; we will clean that hospital up. We used to go to that hospital; my mother was a nurse there when it was still Coronation Hospital. There will be a huge difference; we believe in cleanliness,” she said.
Health minister Dr Joe Phaahla said his department would hold talks with the province in finding lasting solutions to the challenges faced by some of the health facilities in Gauteng.
“In this regard, we will engage with the provincial department to secure the necessary funding to allocate for the infrastructure refurbishment of Rahima Moosa and work to reform the human resource and procurement policies to allow agility in response to immediate challenges,” he said.