This was made worse by the latest incident in which a general worker allegedly pretended to be a doctor to follow a pregnant patient into the bathroom at eMbhuleni Hospital, where he allegedly raped her.

The DA called on the provincial government to urgently take safety measures and beef up security in the province’s hospitals.

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“This is the 54th incident of violence towards patients and healthcare workers in Mpumalanga hospitals in the last two financial years, in which the lives of healthcare professionals and patients were threatened. This is a serious concern to the DA, as it seems that providing security at Mpumalanga hospitals is not a priority to the provincial government and the Department of Health,” said Jane Sithole, the provincial DA spokesperson on health.

Sithole added that it took the Mpumalanga government over 15 months to award a much-needed contract to provide security-related equipment to all hospitals – in the process leaving healthcare workers and patients vulnerable to attacks.

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Barberton Hospital recently came under attack when a local soccer match turned deadly, and a member of the public
was shot at the hospital’s gates.

In 2019, a mob of people from a nearby tavern entered Witbank Hospital in eMalahleni and held doctors and nurses at gunpoint, demanding that they stopped treating victims of a fight that had occurred earlier at the bar. A patient who had been admitted for gunshot wounds was gunned down later the same week in the hospital’s corridors.

“The DA calls on Premier Refilwe Mtshweni-Tsipane and the MEC for health, Sasekani Manzini, to take the safety of frontline
workers seriously. They must urgently put precautionary measures in place to strengthen security in all healthcare centres across the province,” said Sithole.

Dumsani Malamule, the spokesperson for health, said the eMbhuleni Hospital employee in question had been suspended.
He said the department was working hard to improve security measures in hospitals, such as the installation of cameras, metal scanners and more. “We encourage people to verify the identity of health professionals and note unfamiliar behaviour.”

Brig Leonard Hlathi, the provincial spokesperson for SAPS, confirmed that the 31-year-old suspect had been arrested in Mtubatuba, KwaZulu-Natal on May 25 in connection with the alleged rape.

The suspect briefly appeared in Eerstehoek Magistrate’s Court on May 26. He was remanded in custody and the matter was postponed until June 24 for further investigations.