Accusations of neglect at Dundee Hospital spark outrage among families

Accusations of neglect have again been levelled against Dundee Hospital by the families of patients sent for treatment there. The most recent complaint involves the Harding family, whose father and husband, Mark, tragically passed away on Monday in a private medical facility after the family allege that he received poor treatment at Dundee Hospital, where he was admitted for a kidney condition.

According to the family, Mark was left without proper care for extended periods during his stay in Ward 7. The Harding family claims that Mark, who had one leg, was not put on an intravenous drip for several hours after being admitted.

When he finally was, they allege that the ‘tap’ was never turned on, leaving him without proper hydration. Additionally, the family report that Mark was left unattended in the toilet for hours, despite repeated attempts to seek assistance. His sons, Brett and Dylan, said the paraplegic toilet, which would have been more suitable for their father, was allegedly out of order.

When they offered to fix it themselves, they were reportedly laughed off by hospital staff. “We had tools in the car, as we are handy and know what to do. It would help other patients who are struggling, but they just laughed it off.” The family claims that Mark was left in the toilet from 08:00 to 13:00, unable to call out for help due to his condition. The Harding family raised their concerns with night shift nurses on Saturday, who reportedly told them to return on Monday to report the issue to hospital management.

The nurses allegedly refused to provide details on the medication Mark was receiving, and the family described the staff’s attitude as ‘off-hand’ and ‘rude’, with no doctors available to address their concerns. After requesting a complaint form at reception, the family was given one in Zulu, a language they cannot read. Despite this, they completed the form and recorded their interactions with staff, where one nurse was allegedly overheard referring to the family as ‘being stupid’ in Zulu – a recording of which has been obtained by The Courier.
In response to the lack of proper care, the Harding family made the difficult decision to remove Mark from the hospital, stating that the care he was receiving was insufficient.
“The nurses spend more time on their phones than attending to the patients’ needs,” they said.
Sadly, Mark passed away on Monday, which left the family both devastated and with more questions than answers.

This incident follows a similar case last year involving the death of Gary Harrison, which was also attributed to severe neglect, as well as other ongoing complaints about the hospital’s treatment of patients.

In another disturbing account, Ms Tontpal, who had heart surgery in 2005, detailed her experience at Dundee Hospital on the night of February 21. After arriving with high blood sugar, she was allegedly left in the casualty ward without being attended to. A doctor, she claims, was sitting on a bed and appeared to ignore her condition.

“It seemed racial, as they were allowing other races to go in, knowing I was sitting there for hours. They sent me to do a urine test and the toilets were disgusting. The stench of urine was unbearable. Even after complaints were made to the nursing staff at the casualty department, the cleaners did not come to clean the toilets.” She said her experience was ‘horrific’. “I also had eye surgery at Madadeni Hospital and the doctors refused to give the treatment that was prescribed in my file from Madadeni. I’ve never experienced anything like this,” she said.

“The whole experience was horrific, and I felt ignored and mistreated.”
Dundee Hospital and the KZN Health Department have been asked for a response, and this will be published once received.

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