Themba Hospital back on track after week-long go-slow
The Mpumalanga Department of Health's spokesperson, Dumisani Malamule, said the DoH will have a meeting with the union soon to discuss matters.
Community members struggled to be attended to at Themba Hospital last week due to a go-slow strike.
This week-long strike is said to have blocked patients’ access to receive the full services they usually get.
On Friday February 2, the Mpumalanga Department of Health’s (DoH) spokesperson, Dumisani Malamule, said the go-slow was fuelled by the building’s lifts that have occasionally been non-functional, thus affecting operations at the hospital.
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“Some members of Nehawu were demanding answers on issues regarding dilapidated infrastructure, including faulty lifts, staff appointments and other services. Last week, the department appointed a service provider to fix the lifts, however, it was discovered that there is more damage to the lifts, which required some new parts to be sourced outside the country. The service provider, who is currently on-site, has now fixed one lift and it’s operational. The second lift is said to need parts, which have already been sourced. The third lift is said to require a period of two weeks to be ready for use; however, the department and the union have since requested the service provider on-site to shorten the period,” Malamule explained.
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“The entire management of the hospital is now back at work and the public can now fully access services.”
He said the union and the DoH have since agreed to have a meeting on February 13, to deliberate on all outstanding matters and to provide progress feedback.
