Ill-treatment allegations at Leratong: ‘Use of cell by children against policies, regulations’
Department of Health said they acknowledged a Toekomsrus mother's complaint against Leratong Hospital, but denied that children were allowed to use cellphones at the facility.
The Gauteng Department of Health (GDoH) has responded officially to the article on the front page of the Herald’s October 8 edition with headline ‘My child now fears a hospital’.
Read initial article here: ‘My child now fears a hospital’
The GDoH is the custodian of the state-owned hospitals in the province.
The story features a Toekomsrus mother speaking out about her 10-year-old son Alano Johnson allegedly being ill-treated and neglected at Leratong Hospital in Krugersdorp. The 29-year-old Tarryn Feeris told the Herald in an exclusive interview that her son had suffered what she described as a ‘nightmare ordeal’ while in the hospital. Her once jolly son now often has bad dreams, is traumatised and fears not only a hospital, but doctors and nurses.
Johnson was admitted for five days after being diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome.
Feeris explained that as visitors were not allowed due to Covid-19 restrictions, she asked that her son used his cellphone to stay in touch with her.
“They initially refused but eventually allowed it after his psychologist recommended it would help,” Feeris claimed.
Although the day-shift nurses were aware that her son had been granted his wish to use his phone, it was a different story when one of the night-shift nurses saw the phone and allegedly grabbed it from him. She also took his charger and adaptor.
He cried and begged for the phone until they gave it back to him. He also called and told me what had happened. “When I phoned the ward a sister told me ‘your child is not supposed to have his phone in the ward, what makes him so special?’.”
According to the Gauteng Department of Health’s Head of Communication Motalatale Modiba, children were not allowed to carry or use cellphones in hospital wards.
Responding to the question how else children could stay in contact with their parents considering visits were not allowed as per Covid-19 regulations, according to Feeris, Modiba said:
Parents were allowed 15 minutes visiting hours per day as per lockdown regulations at the time of the child’s admission (24 August 2021). Furthermore, parents are welcome to call the ward any time to inquire about the child’s well-being.
“An appointment may be scheduled with the treating team in order to update the parents on the child’s medical issues and the plan,” Modiba said.
Modiba also confirmed that the Department, as well as management of the facility were aware of the case.
When asked about the standard procedure for one to lodge a complaint with the hospital, Modiba said, “A Standard Operating Procedure is available and supported by posters displayed in the wards in the hospital. In each ward any complaint can be lodged with the Head of the Department, Unit Manager, Operational Manager, or any other health worker.
The complaint may be escalated internally to the Quality Assurance office when unresolved as per policy,” Modiba said in the statement.
In the same statement, Modiba said Johnson wasn’t granted permission to use a cellphone during his hospital stay, adding “… it has to be noted that this is against policy and regulation in place. The nursing team upon realising that the child had a phone, kept it away and returned it to the mother at the first opportunity,” he added.
The Herald also asked Modiba if the department was aware of cases of children being ill-treated at the said hospital, to which Modiba responded, “Not at the time of this response”.
