Families wait years for toxicology reports, but NHLS commits to clearing thousands of cases with expanded labs and staff.
The National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) has vowed to intensify a push to halve toxicology case backlogs by the end of the 2025/2026 financial year amid concerns over delays in toxicology services.
An initiative is being implemented by the NHLS with the goal of reducing the backlog of toxicology cases by 50% by the end of the 2025/2026 financial year.
The NHLS said on Tuesday that this initiative aims to greatly improve turnaround times for toxicological results across all NHLS Forensic Chemistry Laboratories (FCLs). The programme includes additional investments in infrastructure, technology and human resources.
Families wait years for toxicology reports
Last week, the DA in Gauteng raised the decade-long delay in toxicology report processing to its national counterparts in the National Assembly.
DA Gauteng spokesperson for health Madeleine Hicklin said the delays prevent families from gaining closure, securing justice and proceeding with burials.
The party added that this backlog stems from the South African Police Service (Saps) toxicology labs’ failure to process specimens, with over 140 000 cases currently stalled nationwide.
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“The effect on families is devastating; they remain trapped by a system unable to offer comprehensive autopsy and post-mortem reports because of missing toxicology evidence,” Hicklin said.
This is still the case even though the R703 million Johannesburg Forensic Pathology Laboratory is still not finished, the DA added.
Hicklin said there is a Boksburg North family that was promised a report for their son and husband in eight weeks, but it now faces up to 10 years of waiting.
Boksburg family waiting for report
“The merry-go-round, since then, has seen them shunted to three different Saps stations, armed with the mortuary/postmortem number, and now a ‘verdict’ that they might have to wait up to 10 years for results of the toxicology report,” she said.
The DA in Gauteng described this as “inhumane” and “criminal torture” for the mourning family.
The party said it has escalated the cases to the national Department of Health.
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The NHLS acknowledged these concerns and pledged to stabilise and speed up services in forensic pathology and criminal justice.
The organisation also corrected the DA’s statistics, stating that the toxicology backlog is 40 051, with most cases predating the NHLS integration of the FCLs.
NHLS spokesperson Mzi Gcukumana said NHLS has purchased new high-output analytical instruments for its labs in Pretoria, Johannesburg and Cape Town to move forward with this backlog recovery plan.
Infrastructure, tech and staffing improvements
These instruments are exclusively designated for backlog samples, ensuring that they do not disrupt the processing of new incoming cases.
The NHLS has also hired extra technical professionals on fixed-term contracts, whose primary responsibility will be to clear the backlog, leaving permanent employees to focus on routine casework.
Gcukumana said it has expanded laboratory space in Johannesburg to establish a dedicated backlog processing unit, with parallel workflows to speed up submissions, and a similar model is already running in Pretoria.
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To ease pressure on the Pretoria and Cape Town labs, the NHLS is expanding toxicology services across KwaZulu-Natal.
All analytical equipment is undergoing a full technical assessment, with faulty instruments repaired or replaced, while a structured shift system and overtime aim to boost throughput.
Gcukumana added that, as part of its digital modernisation, the NHLS is moving to the TrakCare system. This move aims to enhance reporting, ensure data integrity, and provide real-time monitoring of backlog progress.
‘NHLS aims to restore operational effectiveness’
“This initiative represents a critical advancement toward long-term sustainability and accountability within the FCLs,” he said.
“By enhancing both capacity and systemic efficiency, NHLS aims to restore operational effectiveness, strengthen public confidence, and reaffirm its commitment to supporting justice and public health.”
