Bronkhorstspruit hospital Covid-19 ward finally opened
After months of delays the upgraded hospital is now fully functional and ready to admit Covid-19 patients.
Long-awaited upgrades to the Bronkhorstspruit hospital have finally been completed after months of delays caused by so-called construction mafia.
Gauteng premier David Makhura and health MEC Dr Nomathemba Mokgethi officially opened the newly-built Covid-19 isolation ward at the hospital on Thursday.
The hospital has an additional 66 staff members who will assist with the management of the ward which will accommodate 150 patients, bringing the total of beds at the hospital to 200.
Makhura said delays to the hospital were caused by individuals referring to themselves as the “business forum” who wanted to extort money from the project.
“Criminals who think they will hold us to ransom will not succeed,” he said.
“They drive around collecting money. They do that in Mamelodi, some have been arrested.
“They want to live on the backs of others and do not want to work.”
In a partnership between BMW and the Gauteng Health Department, the hospital was one of four in Tshwane, including the Mamelodi hospital, that benefited from infrastructure upgrades.
In addition to the infrastructure, the hospital gained eight ICU beds, 16 paediatric cot beds and four resus linen.
“The patients under investigation will have additional capacity where they can be observed,” he said.
“The critical care beds will help patients who need the next level of treatment.”
He said the initial plan was to build a field hospital, but after extensive research the partnership led them to building a more sustainable facility that would benefit communities even after the pandemic.
“We chose not to build temporary field hospitals that we will dismantled afterwards,” he said.
“We are investing in the future of healthcare. I know this is going to make a big difference in this area.”
Hospital CEO Dr Phumzile Nkumani said before the upgrades, the facility did not have the necessary infrastructure to handle the influx of people who came in for medical treatment.
She said the hospital was forced to transfer patients to the Mamelodi hospital or Steve Biko academic hospital.
She also said these hospitals in the cluster were under pressure and the upgrades would go a long way towards alleviating that.
“This will assist us to manage our patients efficiently and also relieve the burden at the Mamelodi and Steve Biko cluster,” she said
“Our intention is to make sure the patients who are tested and are positive, can be isolated so we can prevent the spread of the virus.”
Tshwane ward 101 councillor Nomvula Mathenjwa said the expansion of the hospital was much needed as residents in the area often found themselves stranded when in need of medical assistance.
Mathenjwa said people in the area would have to drive to neighbouring hospitals and sometimes under critical conditions.
“We are happy that people will receive the necessary medical treatment nearby,” she said, adding that more young people from region 7 can also be employed at the hospital and other similar projects, “so they can contribute to the local economy”.
The project also saw other healthcare facilities such as the Mamelodi hospital being upgraded and refurbished.
In all, a donation of 150 hospital beds was delivered to the Dr George Mukhari academic hospital and 200 beds to the Jubilee district hospital, as part of the total 800 beds donated.
The company also donated an ambulance, as well as the three BMW X3s to be used as responder vehicles servicing the Ga-Rankuwa, Mabopane and Soshanguve areas.
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