After residents voiced their concerns regarding the lack of after-hours emergency care on community social media groups five local medical doctors, Dr. Hlulani Shivambu, Dr. Johanne Motema Mkhabela, Dr. Julia Dabrowski, Dr. Amber Polley, and Dr. Kate Van den Aardweg agreed to be available to be on call after-hours on a rotation schedule.

Residents are advised that when the phone goes unanswered to wait a few minutes and call again since the on-call doctor could, at that moment, be in an after-hours consultation and unable to answer or might be in an area with no cellphone reception. Karen Steffen, the regional representative of Manage All Medical Scheme Brokers has compiled a list of emergency numbers for local residents to use. She frequently posts an updated list on local community social media groups.

Emergency numbers
• On-call doctor for emergencies 063 051 2999
• Ambulances, clinics, and hospitals can be
contacted on the following numbers:
• Africa Safe-T: 010 590 6313
• Hoedspruit Medical Rescue – 072 170 0864
• Hoedspruit Ambulance: 015 383 0650 or 10177
• Med-OSH Consulting: 078 672 0215
• Tzaneen Mediclinic: 015 306 8526
• Tintswalo Hospital: 013 795 8600
• Hlokomela Clinic 082 560 0248
AfriRad: 015 880 1722

WHAT IS AN EMERGENCY?

According to Karen Steffen of Manage Alle Medical Scheme Brokers, a patient that displays life-threatening symptoms such as unconsciousness or difficulty breathing; severe blood loss or vomiting and diarrhea; trauma due to an accident, animal attack, or snake bite; signs of head trauma, heart attack or stroke is experiencing a medical emergency. “An ambulance should be called and the patient should be taken to the nearest hospital as soon as possible. Alternatively, you can drive the patient to the closest hospital yourself,” says Steffen.

The closest private hospital is Tzaneen Mediclinic and Tintswalo Hospital in Acornhoek is the closest state hospital. Before phoning the dedicated after-hours medical emergency number, the caller should decide whether the patient can wait for treatment by a medical doctor during the available practice hours, or not. Steffen adds that a patient displaying symptoms of malaria, fever, migraine, severe pain, or kidney stones; or a patient requiring stitches or treatment for a burn wound or has a suspected skeletal fracture should see the available doctor on call.

“We live in a dangerous area with different dangers than city folk has to contend with, but don’t have the facilities that a city offers. It is important to work together as a community,” says Steffen. She also recommends that residents should talk to their house doctor about their emergency protocol and remember to phone the dedicated after-hours medical emergency number on 063 051 2999 if the practice does not offer after-hours service. After-hours consultation fees cost more than regular consultation fees. An additional precaution for residents could be to do the first aid course.