Local newsNews

Gauteng Health denounces disruptive actions by community members at Kalafong Hospital

Recently, community members have been blocking patients from entering the facility by demanding they produce identity documents at the gate.

The Gauteng Department of Health expressed deep concern regarding the disruptive behaviour of some community members at Kalafong Provincial Tertiary Hospital in Atteridgeville, Pretoria West.

Recently, community members have been blocking patients from entering the facility by demanding they produce identity documents at the gate.

 

A video circulating on social media depicts a group of people shouting and turning away a pregnant woman believed to be Zimbabwean for failing to produce identity documents.

In the footage, the group is also heard questioning another woman whether she had paid for the medical services she received and whether Zimbabwe reimburses the South African government for healthcare provided to its citizens at the expense of South African taxpayers.

The group of women, holding South African flags, can also be heard instructing the heavily pregnant woman to make arrangements to give birth elsewhere as they are burdening the health care of the country.

Health department spokesperson Motalatale Modiba said no community member or structure has a right to prevent others from accessing healthcare services, and such illegal acts warrant unequivocal condemnation.

Modiba said police have been called on-site to assist in managing the situation, saying, “We urge law enforcement agencies to ensure that the laws of the land are implemented and those responsible for preventing patients from accessing healthcare services are held accountable.”

He explained that access to healthcare services is a constitutional right to anyone living in this country. Because of this, no individual can be permitted to infringe upon another’s right to access healthcare.

Do you have more information about the story?

Please send us an email to bennittb@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.

For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites: Rekord East

For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram or TikTok.

At Caxton, every story is written by humans. We use AI only to perform quality checks - never to generate the news. Happy reading!

Support local journalism

Add The Citizen as a preferred source to see more from Rekord in Google News and Top Stories.

Itumeleng Mokoena

Itumeleng Mokoena is a skilled journalist with experience in investigative reporting, interviewing, photography, and writing accurate news. Based at Pretoria Rekord East, he covers various beats and is dedicated to informing and educating the community. With a diploma from Tshwane University of Technology and previous experience at Lowveld Media, he is a passionate and hardworking journalist.
Back to top button