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All 50 provincial clinics in Tshwane are allegedly without toilet paper for a second month, causing considerable discomfort and hygiene hazard for thousands of staff and patients.
Democratic Alliance MPL Gauteng shadow health MEC Jack Bloom said, according to his information, the Gauteng health department stopped the purchase and distribution of toilet paper for the clinics on March 18 this year.
“Staff have brought their own toilet rolls and sometimes newspaper or pages from telephone directories. It is unclear why toilet paper was stopped, but it is probably because of lack of budget towards the end of the financial year at the end of April, or it could be sheer incompetence, which is not rare in this department,” Bloom said.
He said that breakdown in toilet paper availability in clinics highlighted the department’s continuing management problems that needed to be rectified in all areas.
“Clinics are stressful environments with sick people who don’t need further trauma when they use toilets without paper to clean themselves,” he added.
According to Bloom, the department has only responded this week to ordering new rolls of toilet paper for the provincial clinics.