While residents blamed security guards at the Tshwane District Hospital for the recent death of a homeless man, the situation has devolved into a “he said, she said” scenario with the hospital denying responsibility for the man’s death.

This is after a man died last week Tuesday on his way to the Tshwane hospital.

The residents claimed that the man died after the hospital security allegedly turned him away when he showed up for a follow-up appointment made the previous week.

Tshwane District Hospital spokesperson Zandile Mthimunye said that a CCTV video clearly showed that the man crossed the street, only to collapse outside the hospital premises, and died on the street before he could enter the hospital.

“He never reached the hospital emergency department,” she said.

Anton Omari said that his “brother” could still be alive today if he was allowed onto the premises earlier on the day of his death, when they first arrived at the hospital.

However, they were allegedly turned away by security. His brother’s condition worsened to the extent that he died by the time he made his way back to the hospital.

Omari said that they had originally went to the hospital a week before as the “brother” was not feeling well.

“We went to the hospital around 20:00 the previous week,” said Omari.

“The treatment we received was as though we were not allowed [to be tended to], as they helped the people who came after us.”

He said they waited seven hours at the hospital before being assisted.

He said his “brother” finally received treatment and medication, and was told to return the following week.

According to Omari, they returned the following week as requested for the follow-up treatment only to have security deny them entry at the hospital’s gate, insisting that they first go and wash their clothes.

Omari said that despite his pleas that his “brother” was very ill and needed to get into the hospital, the security became very harsh with them and they had no option but to leave.

“The deceased started crying. He asked if we could not call an ambulance or doctor outside.”

Omari then took his brother and cleaned him up, after which the deceased returned to the hospital by himself.

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A car guard at the hospital known as “Namoni” confirmed that the man collapsed on the pavement outside the hospital’s entrance.

He said that after the man collapsed, he (Namoni) asked him why he had fallen down, but that the man did not respond.

“I took him while he was alive and moved him off the street.”

Namoni alleged that he went to inform security that he needed help taking the man into the hospital, but they refused.

“The security said, ‘No we don’t want that man in here, he is dirty and they steal’,” said Namoni.

Namoni said he asked the security how someone who was that ill could steal, but they ignored him.

He then asked another man for help, who went in to ask the nurse for help in the hospital.

Watch:

ALSO READ: Homeless man dies allegedly after being turned away from Tshwane District hospital

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Mthimunye said the hospital could not even confirm if the man had been a patient at the hospital; nor could she confirm that he had visited the hospital the previous week.

Mthimunye said that an investigation into whether the man was in fact a patient at the hospital, and had visited the hospital previously, would be launched.

“The process is lengthy, he could have been a patient or not, that we do not know.

“We need to get his full name and surname as well as date of birth and that will let us know; however, we cannot confirm if he was a previous patient or not.”

Gauteng Health MEC, Dr Bandile Masuku dismissed the allegations as untrue.

“I would like to remind South Africans that the Bill of Rights states unequivocally that access to healthcare is a basic human right and therefore, nobody can be denied access to healthcare,’ said Masuku.

Another homeless man alleged that when his wife went to seek help at the hospital for tuberculosis, she was sent away by the same security at the gate.

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ALSO READ:Fifth body of homeless man found in Muckleneuk

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