Until recently, Mpumalanga’s healthcare services were in need of a dedicated burns unit. This posed significant challenges, especially for patients having to travel to Gauteng’s hospitals for assistance.

The first specialised burns unit in the province was officially opened at Rob Ferreira Hospital by the Mpumalanga MEC for health, Sasekani Manzini, on April 16.

Manzini said the unit is equipped to provide critical care for even severe burns. Twelve beds have already been made available since January 29, as a pilot phase, enabling the team to provide patient care, while adhering to capacity restrictions.

The unit’s medical team consists of a plastic and reconstructive surgeon (as the head of the unit), four medical officers, an operational manager, an area manager, eight nurses during the day and six at night. Additional support staff are also available to the unit.

Manzini said the unit will accept referrals of patients across three districts in the province.

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It was vital for the unit to function at this particular district hospital, mentioning its statistics in dealing with burn patients. “Statistics from the hospital show that 324 children and 244 in adults were treated for severe burns between May 2023 and January 2025. Around 40% of these patients died due to the burns.”

She said burns are a cause of many deaths in the province and nationwide.

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“Approximately 3.2% of the South African population sustains serious burn wounds every year. That is 1.6 million cases per year, of which 35 000 are children. This is common mostly in low- and middle-income countries like ours,” said Manzini.