MPUMALANGA PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT

Witbank Hospital Private Bag X7206

Mandela Avenue Emalahleni
Emalahleni 1035
1035 Tel: 013 653 2151
Republic of South Africa Int: +27 13 653 2151
Fax: 013 656 2453
Int: +27 13 656 2453
Department of Health
WITBANK HOSPITAL

Litiko LeteMphilo Umnyango WezaMaphilo Departement van Gesondheid

ENQ:
REF:

TO : MEC, DEPT OF HEALTH, MPUMALANGA PROVINCE

FROM : WITBANK HOSPITAL EMPLOYEES

We, Witbank Employees, have been experiencing problems with the following issues, which the
Acting CEO (Ex Clinical Manager) Dr J Hlongwane, has been well aware of;

1. SAFETY AND SECURITY

- Highly trained security guards equivalent to ones at Provincial Government

Offices, Riverside Building, Nelspruit
- Permanent armed SAPS in ALL THREE GATES, supervising Security Guards
- Availability of Panic Buttons in Casualty, Paeds and Psychiatry Wards)
- All departments and Wards should have a Security Guard ( URGENT)
- Access cards, and acess controlled entrances and wards
- Access controlled turn-style gates at all the main entrances of the hospital
- After hours security escorts for staff on duty
- Disaster management plan non-existant ( no assembly points, no fire exists, no
fire extinguishers)
- Visitors parking must be allocated outside the Hospital Premises after hours for
security reasons.
- Separate staff and patient parking - URGENTLY NEEDED

2. CLINICAL

Theatre

- Limited theatre time

- Compromised theatre services as far as infection controll
- Lack of equipment

• NO linen
• OLD AUTOCLAVES
• Old instruments
• Non-functional suctions and diathermies
• Non-functional air conditioner
• Water and electricity outages
• Unsafe stretchers
• No theatre Porters
• Broken non-functional theatre doors due to poor quality
• Compromised theatre space, especially Recovery
• Non-functional Obstetics & Gynaecology theatres
• Easy access to theatre from the main corridor, compromising
infection controll
• Access control card are a must
•

- Staff shortages – cleaners, porters, radiographers, nurses and doctors

MEDICAL STAFF

- We demand South African doctors and specialists

- Lack of Continued Professional Development
- No well organised academic programmes
- High Vacancy rate in Specialists Posts ( Radilologist, Dermatologist,
Anaesthetist, Ophthalmologist, General Surgery, Internal Medicine)
- Shortage of Medical Officers across all specialities
- Disparity in staff renumeration
- Discrepancies in levels and grading

NURSING STAFF

- Shortage of nurses – all categories (RN, SN, ENA)

- No permanent appointed Assistant Directors and Operational Managers
- Unpaid Acting Staff due to frozen posts
- TRANSPARENCY in Appointment of NURSING MANAGERS

PORTERS

- No uniform
- No trolleys
- No wheelchairs
- High Vacancy Rate (Principal, Senior, Porter)
- Need for Mortuary Attendants
 - Dedicated theatre porters to reduce delays in theatre.

GENERAL ASSISTANTS

- Shortage of Cleaners resulting in NO NIGHT STAFF, NO WEEKEND STAFF

- NO SUPERVISORS for CLEANERS
- Staff vacancies created by Inter-departmental transfers be filled with immediate
effect ( Cleaning staff transferred to Porters)
- No cleaning Equipment
- No Skills Development Programme for Cleaners
- No Protective Clothing for Cleaners and Groundsman (e.g heavy duty gloves for
cleaners)
- No Ablusion Block for Groundsman
- Shortage of Food Services Staff, hence cleaners are used to serve patients
- No Kitchen Space
- Poor quality kitchen equipment
- No Utensils for serving patients (No cups, saucers, no plates, no crockery)
- No food dispensing trolleys
- No uniform for kitchen staff
- No protective clothing for kitchen staff

PATIENT TRANSPORT

- Need for dedicated planned patient transport

- Severe shortage of drivers
- Shortage of vehicles
- Need for extra passenger vehicle
- Review insurance policy and maintanance of hospital vehicles

FILING SYSTEM

- Poor file controll

- Files get lost very often resulting in poor record keeping
- Non availability of patient’s records due to poor procurement
- Shortage of filing archives and space

PHARMACY

- Need more efficient dispensing strategy

- General drugs shortages
- Difficulty in accessing restricted drugs
- Drugs out of stock for longer than two months
- Shortage of pharmacy General Assistants
- Shortage of Folk lifts more than a year resulting in occupational injuries
 CASUALTY

- Poor referral system

- Shortage of nursing staff, for an example, there should be 4 nurses in a shift,
but there’s always shortage resulting in compromised rescussitation
- Shortage of equipment e.g strechers, wheelchairs, Styker Beds (Rescuss beds),
Rescuss equipment, Examination equipment,
- No separate examination Cubicles compromising privacy
- Shortage of Doctors
- No TRAUMA TRAINED CONSULTANTS
- No TRAUMA ASSESSMENT UNIT – Admission beds for observation

HELP DESK
- Non existent
- Patient care compromised

EYE CLINIC

- Lack of response to reported ophthalmic surgical complications

- No separate consulting rooms resulting in lack of confidentiality
- Electrical faults
- Staff shortages, nurses and doctors
- No Consultant HOD
- No equipment
- Long Cateract waiting list ( Approx 1400)

ORAL/DENTAL AND MAXILLO-FACIAL SURGERY

- No functioning Consulting Chairs

- No EQUIPMENT,
- Patients placed on WAITING LIST since 2015 for Oral Surgical Procedures
- No Assistant Dental Nursing Staff compromising service at Outreach Clinics
- Limited theatre time
- Shortage of instruments
- NO DOCTORS FOR EMERGENCY AFTER HOURS, and ADMITTED PATIENTS

GENERAL SURGERY

- No examination equipment
- No theatre equipment
- Shortage of staff ( NO HOD, CONSULTANT and COMPETENT MEDICAL
OFFICERS)
 - No elective surgery done

NEUROSURGERY
- No examination equipment
- No theater equipment
-

ANAESTHETICS
- no medical air and oxygen
- no equipment
- Staff shortage ( No permanent HOD, nursing and medical staff)

ORTHOPAEDICS

- Shortage of equipment
- Shortage of staff
- No examination equipment
- Backlog in theater cases

HOSPITALACCOMODATION PROBLEMS

- Availability of space for ALL QUALIFYING WORKERS

- NO MAINTANANCE of hospital accomodation
- Insufficient HOUSING ALLOWANCE
- TAXED HOUSING ALLOWANCE
- Safety and Security
- No HOT water
- LACK OF ON - CALL ROOMS
- NO GENERATORS available when theres electricity outages

ADMINISTRATIVE URGENT ISSUES

- Shortage of ADMIN STAFF across all departments (e.g Finance, IT)

- Shortage of Computers
- Shortage of Staff in SALARY DEPARTMENT
- NO USPERVISOR in SALARY DEPARTMENT
- TRANSPARENCY with HOSPITAL BUDGET in FINANCE DEPT
- No SUPERVISOR in REVENUE since 2015
- No DEDICATED MAINTANANCE OFFICER
- PMDS INCENTIVE tob e shared amongst ALL EMPLOYEES
- NO SECRETARY for CEO and MEDICAL MANAGER
- CRITERIA FOR ACTING MANAGERIAL POSITIONS
- NO HOSPITAL RISK MANAGER
 PSYCHOLOGY DEPARTMENT

- NO MANAGEMENT FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES

- NO SUPPORT FROM OUR HOSPITAL MANAGEMENT
- NO CO-ORDINATED SERVICES

SOCIAL WORK DEPARTMETS

- Shortage of Staff
- Lack of visible and adequate ofice space
- NO MANAGER in SOCIAL WORK DEPT

URGENT INFRASTRUCTURE PROBLEMS

- NO WATER
- NO HOT WATER IN CHILDREN’S WARDS AND OTHER WARDS
- UNPREDICTABLE ELECTRICITY SUPPLY
- NO SUFFICIENT GENERATOR to take over during ELectricity Outages
- SEWERAGE PROBLEMS (Pharmacy, Eye Clinic, Theatre, Ward 5)
- PLUMBING PROBLEMS
- POOR MAINTAINANCE
- POOR QUALITY CONTRACTOR WORK
- LACK OF SPACE TO ACCOMODATE PATIENTS IN OPD

DEMANDS ------ URGENTLY NEEDED

1. SAFETY and SECURITY MEASURES be implemented with immediate effect
2. WATER AND ELECTRICITY TO BE SORTED OUT IMMEDIATELY
3. ALL SEWERAGE PROBLEMS BE SORTED IMMEDIATELY
4. MEDICAL AIR AND OXYGEN PROBLEMS BE SORTED IMMEDIATELY
5. STAFF VACANCIES BE FILLED IMMEDIATELY ACROSS ALL DISCIPLINES
6. EQUIPMENT AND TOOLS OF TRADES BE AVAILABLE WITH IMMEDIATE
EFFECT
7. PROTECTIVE CLOTHING and UNIFORM BE AVAILABLE IMMEDIATELY
8. URGENT NEED FOR 10 MORE AMBULANCES
9. URGENT SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME FOR EMS PERSONNEL
10. EXECUTIVE HOSPITAL COMMITTEE MUST BE SUSPENDED WITH
IMMEDIATE EFFECT and DISCIPLINARY ACTION TAKEN AGAINST THEM