KAMAQHEKEZA – Mpumalanga MEC for health Mr Gillion Mashego officially opened the Naas Community Health Centre on Tuesday.
The construction of the clinic started in 2014 and it will provide health services such as post-natal care, HIV-testing and counselling to basic health care and advice on healthy living to community members.
Mashego thanked the premier Mr David Mabuza for his budget and giving his department the money to construct the new clinic.
“As a department, we pride ourselves that we are here to stay. We are running several programmes to ensure that clinics provide the services that they should and that resources are used correctly,” he stated.
Mashego stressed that clinics should have lab services, adequate medication, enrolled, auxillary and registered nurses, support services and provide crucial health information to the community.
“This is a project launched by President Jacob Zuma which aims to transform all public sector clinics into ideal clinics, with the aim of improving provision of quality health care services to all communities,” he said
He said the work involves transforming the existing clinics and health care centres into ideal clinics, which will be used by all South Africans.
He referred to the high rate of unemployment in the country and stated that the new clinic had created several jobs. Nineteen professional nurses, four staff nurses, five HIV/Aids counsellors, seven cleaners and two gardeners had been appointed at the clinic.
According to the MEC the clinic is set to be one of the best performing clinics in the province within three months of its operation. Mpumalanga. “I know there are areas of improvement like infant- and maternal mortality which should be stopped, “he said.
He stated that the department of health should have social mobilisation programmes in partnership with with local tribal authorities to educate the community about health issues.
He mentioned that a programme will be launched next week and that one of the aims would be to ensure that hawkers’ kitchens were clean and that they followed the correct procedures when preparing food.
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