EDITOR – Is this a political game? – because on every occasion when the Minister of Health is asked the question in Parliament on whether these critical posts are being “frozen”, he replies in the negative with the expression of surprise.
On the ground the reality is that these critical positions are “frozen”. The negative impact that this has on the already strained public health system cannot be quantified but it would not require knowledge of rocket science to know the answer.
In the past three years the ranks of senior public healthcare administrators swelled by 12 per cent as opposed to a 3.5 per cent growth in the numbers of physicians, pathologists and pharmacists. This skewed progression has consequently bolstered appeals from healthcare groups to stop this wide-scale, debilitating freezing of clinical posts.
There has been lots of speculation that after the National Education and Health Workers won a 10 per cent wage increase totalling R69 billion over the 2015/16 financial year, the provincial financial managers have been left with no alternative but to freeze posts as a result of shrinking budgets.
The South African Medical Association (SAMA) and other political players in the health sector have lambasted the Minister identifying this approach has “dangerously short-sighted” and those affected directly are the most vulnerable patient population and the already over-worked clinical staff. This has been further aggravated by the many resignations of specialists, and the end result is that it could lead to the collapse of untenably staffed public health facilities.
In the final analysis Minister Motsoaledi can “kiss” his dream of implementing his widely publicised National Health Scheme. At this rate this dream will remain only a dream.
Sicario
Durban
