Pretoria hospitals phone bills still not paid
Families are left in the dark about their loved one's health conditions as telephones are not working at several Pretoria hospitals.
Concern mounts as families are left in the dark about their loved one’s health conditions, unable to reach them due to telephones not working at several Pretoria hospitals.
The crisis emerged after the Gauteng Health Department disclosed that the telephone systems were offline due to unpaid bills to Telkom.
According to DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Health Jack Bloom, the phone crisis has been ongoing for more than five weeks.
He said it is causing immense distress as patients and their relatives cannot contact hospitals, and staff must use their phones for essential communication.
“According to the Department, 32 hospitals and 83 clinics were affected. They claim this is due to disputed Telkom bills, but surely it should have been sorted out by now.
“I suspect they simply ran out of money by the end of the financial year on 31 March. An astounding R2.275 billion overspend is projected despite not meeting key targets, including poor ambulance response times and low child immunisation.”
Bloom highlighted the following complaint he received:
“We have a son in Weskoppies hospital in Pretoria and I would just like to let u know that their Telephone Lines have not worked for over a month. We were given a cell phone number of the ward he is in but it goes unanswered.
“We went there yesterday to visit him as we do every week and the cellphone they have in the ward doesn’t work. I think for families with family members at any of these facilities it’s a grave concern as there is no communication whatsoever.”
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Bloom said major hospitals like Charlotte Maxeke and Steve Biko are also affected.
“This department can’t get simple things right, like paying bills on time, never mind running a decent ambulance service and immunising all children.
“It remains mired in crisis because of gross mismanagement, despite all the promises for improvement.”
As patients lie in hospital beds, their relatives grapple with anxiety and uncertainty, highlighting the urgent need for a resolution to this telecommunications debacle.
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