Tshwane ‘hoping’ to be granted ambulance licence, as jobs at risk

The Tshwane Metro Emergency Services Department is on a bid to save jobs as it’s “hoping” to be granted a licence to run ambulance services in the metro on an annual basis, according to EMS regulations, soon.

Since March the metro has been running ambulance services on a special agreement with the Gauteng department.

Tshwane emergency services spokesperson Charles Mabaso said, “We are hoping to soon pronounce that licensing to our ambulance service has been issued”.

Mabaso said the department had submitted all the necessary documents pertaining to the ambulance licence, to the Gauteng health department.

“We are also complying with the Gauteng health for any other documents needed for the licence to be granted.”

The Tshwane metro resumed its ambulance services after it was granted permission by the provincial government, with condition that – the metro would pay for services “without extra cost to the provincial health department”.

The temporary arrangement in the operations of services came after Tshwane’s ambulance services came to a complete standstill for 12 days. This was because they were not granted the necessary licences, due to the “provincialisation” process by Gauteng to merge province and metro ambulance services into one.

According to the provincial government, this process was intended to achieve seamless operations and equitable service across the province with a single command and control, unhindered by municipal boundaries.

Tshwane MMC for community safety and emergency services Karen Meyer said it was important to note that the Gauteng province had indicated that they would not take over our ambulances or staff.

“We have 790 emergency medical practitioners in the city, 299 operational medical personnel, 97 vehicles including 73 ambulances, seven transporters and two special infection units.”

Mayer said Tshwane was the third-largest city in the world per square kilometre, servicing approximately three million residents of which about a third were unemployed without health insurance.

She said it was important Tshwane ran such services as the country was in the middle of a pandemic, “awaiting another wave”.

She said the province had also made a decision to provincialise the emergency medical services, however, it officially withdrew the subsidy during November 2018.

“Since then, Tshwane is subsidising this function and it is fully funded by the council. We rendered the full spectrum of emergency medical services.”

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She said the city had been servicing residents with its own allocated funding and did not depend on or receive any subsidy or funding from the provincial government.

“While the exemption is a welcome temporary reprieve, it is still unclear why it ever had to reach this point and for a 12-day disruption to ambulance services rendered by the City, as this was completely unnecessary.”

Meyer said the metro was in a position to assist the province as it had the resources to do so.

“All of us must put the interest of the residents of Tshwane first and work together.”

The temporary resumption came after the Gauteng health department’s acting head officially informed the metro that it was granted a three-month exemption.

This exemption was made in terms of the national health act’s EMS regulations, pending the finalisation of the metro’s licence application.

Residents can contact the metro’s 24/7 toll-free emergency hotline on 107 from any landline or cellphone for fire, rescue, ambulance and disaster response services.

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