New mobile clinic brings healthcare closer to remote communities
The expansion of primary healthcare access in underserved, hard-to-reach communities in Tshwane becomes more accessible with additional mobile units.
Tshwane District Health has received one of seven new units, revealed on August 11 as part of Gauteng’s expansion of its mobile clinic fleet.
According to Gauteng Department of Health (GDoH) spokesperson Steve Mabona, the additional mobile clinic brought the total number of mobile clinics operating in Tshwane to 13.
He said that the new unit will be allocated to communities including Lethabong, Refilwe informal settlement, the Rayton farmland, Lusaka, and surrounding areas.
The allocation was guided by the need to improve access to health services in hard-to-reach areas and ensure that disadvantaged communities receive essential care.
“The factors taken into account included access to healthcare services to improve hard-to-reach areas, more indigent and deserving communities to receive healthcare services, and improved outreach healthcare services,” said Mabona.
He added that the new mobile clinic is expected to become operational before the end of August.
The unit is set to provide a range of primary healthcare services, including preventative and curative care.
“Preventative services include family planning, child immunisation, influenza, and Covid-19 vaccinations; HIV testing and counselling, TB screening and prevention therapy, pre-exposure and post-exposure prophylaxis, prevention of mother-to-child transmission, condom distribution, and cervical screening.”
Residents will also be able to access antenatal and postnatal care, integrated management of childhood illnesses, primary healthcare services for non-communicable diseases, TB management, and ARV therapy management.
Mabona said the GDoH has identified several areas in Tshwane as having a high need for mobile healthcare services.
These areas include, among others, the Kanana Primary Health Clinic catchment area in Boschkop, Jeffsville, Mosehla Hardware, Marry Me Mamelodi, Soshanguve Block BB and Soshanguve Block IA.
He indicated that the metro will receive more mobile units as more are assigned to the province.
“The Tshwane Health District will be allocated additional mobile clinics that will improve access to healthcare services to hard-to-reach areas like mushrooming informal settlements.”
The latest allocation is expected to strengthen the district’s mobile healthcare network and make essential primary healthcare services more accessible to residents in communities that face challenges accessing fixed healthcare facilities.
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