ERMELO – An incident has rocked the SAVF Huis Ermelo after 85-year-old Solomon Dique, in the frail care unit, was left without medical attention for more than five hours following a fall in the early hours of the morning.

According to his family members, CCTV footage shows Dique – a dementia and Alzheimer’s patient – standing up from a chair, walking down a hallway, tripping over an object (possibly a photo frame) and falling at 02:06.

He remained on the floor for more than two hours before an auxiliary nurse discovered him at 04:17.

Instead of following emergency protocol, it is alleged that staff picked him up and “threw him on top of his bed,” before covering him with a blanket. It is alleged that no immediate medical assistance was summoned, but that ER24 ambulance services transported him to hospital at 07:50.

Doctors later confirmed he had sustained a fractured hip, broken arm, and rib injuries.

Heated meeting with stakeholders

The incident sparked an urgent multi-stakeholder meeting at the facility, led by Juliette Basson, Member of Parliament for the Patriotic Alliance.

Basson invited representatives from the Department of Social Development (DSD), health inspectors of the Gert Sibande District Municipality, fellow community activist Silvija Breytenbach, family members of the victim, local SAPS and SAVF management.

Basson, who said this was not the first such complaint at the facility, described the treatment of the elderly resident as “abuse.”

During the meeting she questioned the old age home’s failure to file incident reports with DSD, also alleging that unqualified staff were left to care for frail residents, and that the facility’s manager failed to take responsibility.

“You do not pick an 85-year-old man off the floor and throw him on a bed like a bag of potatoes,” Basson reportedly told management. “

“This man lay in pain on a cold floor in the winter for hours. That is neglect. That is abuse,” she alleged.

Management response during the meeting

According to Basson, acting facility manager Dedric Coetzee admitted during the meeting that procedures were not followed on the night of the incident.

He reportedly confirmed that the patient was discovered at 04:17 and placed in bed without a proper medical assessment.

She added that he was not immediately informed and only became aware of the fall during the facility’s 07:30 morning meeting.

Coetzee, it is said, further acknowledged that no completed incident report was available more than 24 hours later.

According to Basson, SAVF national representatives, including Maria Scholtz, head of marketing and communication, Dr Blanché Verster, head of social services, nursing manager Sunette Roos, and regional manager Mari Louw, attended the meeting.

They reportedly assured stakeholders that the matter would be treated with the utmost seriousness and investigated at the highest level.

The second incident in a fortnight

Basson alleged that at least one other SAVF patient had also recently fallen, yet no official report was filed with the DSD.

While the acting manager, as well as regional and national SAVF representatives, claimed they were unaware of any such incident.

Basson relayed having confirmed it as both men were under the care of the same treating doctor.

SAVF National office responds to incident

Following enquiries and a request for comment on these allegations, SAVF referred the publication to their official statement.

The SAVF stated that the matter is being treated with the “utmost seriousness” and that initial actions have already been taken.

Maria Scholtz, head of marketing, confirmed the precautionary suspension of implicated staff members pending further investigation, and that a team was dispatched to the facility, that investigations were progressing and that a hearing is scheduled for next week.

“The organization is also working with its legal representatives to assess the appropriate next steps, including the possibility of legal action where necessary,” she concluded.

Calls for accountability

Jaco Kirk, a family member of Dique, said that proper implementation of thorough protocols and staffing requirements could have prevented the incident from happening.

Other family members of the victim, including Marelize and Sonja Kirk, expressed deep frustration and sadness, questioning why their family member was not bathed, changed, or put to bed before the fall.

Questions were also posed on whether the facility would cover the mounting medical expenses incurred due to what they allege is staff negligence.

Basson insisted that the case be referred to both the Department of Social Development and the police for investigation based on alleged neglect.

“Everyone in this facility deserves dignity in the last years of their lives,” Basson said. “These are not paychecks – they are people.”

Ongoing scrutiny

Despite Basson’s allegation that at least one other patient had also recently fallen, no official report was filed with the DSD.

The matter is set to be investigated further.

The latest incident has reignited concerns about the quality of care, staff qualifications, and management oversight at the care facility.

Over the past two years, Highvelder has published multiple articles highlighting various allegations, from food provision to resident care, all of which the facility’s hired lawyers and head of marketing and communication have denied.

According to Basson, she asked the DSD representative whether they had received any complaints or incident reports from SAVF management over the last two years.

They responded that they had not received any.

Expected investigations and follow-up

Investigations by the police and DSD are expected to follow.

Basson confirmed  requesting SAPS to review the CCTV footage, open an inquiry docket, collect staff affidavits, and preserve evidence.

District Health officials, she said, were asked to inspect medical waste storage and verify contractor records during a planned walkabout the facility.

SAVF has committed to completing a professional nurse-led incident report.

Basson has indicated she will submit recommendations to the DSD MEC regarding funding conditionality and pursue legal pathways for prior unreported incidents once records are released.