Service at state hospitals a more complicated issue, residents say

POLOKWANE – During a recent visit to the Pietersburg Provincial Hospital, Review spoke to people visiting the hospital to find out what they thought of the service at state hospitals.

Louisa Pienaar said it was especially difficult for the elderly to get good service at the hospital because they had to wait for long periods of time before being assisted. “It seems as if there is no respect for the elderly at the hospital,” she said.

Virginia Thobela said she believed that a lot more could be done for both the patients and the personnel. “People complain that the service is poor and that is a fact, but what is also a fact is that the hospitals are understaffed and the personnel are overworked. When people do not get enough rest, they cannot be expected to be friendly and that leads to patients not having the friendly service they expect. It is not that I condone poor service by the personnel, I just feel that every situation must be looked at from all sides,” she said.

Lillian Letseko said the biggest problem with state hospitals was that there was no money and also that people received poor service, mostly from the nurses, who were the main contacts for people visiting hospitals. “I have had several bad experiences while going to the hospital and have never really received any good treatment – from medication not being provided to files disappearing and even nurses simply ignoring me as a elderly woman. The service at the hospital has caused people not to get needed medical care because they feel they will be better taken care of at home, and this leads to some people becoming seriously ill and even dying,” she said.

Rosina Hlahla said she had only been to the hospital once some time ago for her teeth and did not have any bad experiences. She said she felt that the level of service depended on the nurses and doctors on the day, as well as the service needed.

Jimmy Mafhungo said he felt that the service could be much better. “The people who need these hospitals have nowhere else to go and as such have to put up with the poor service if they want any help. The government needs to make sure that the people providing the service are taken care of. They should also investigate complaints and follow them up with visits to the hospital. Then they will be able to say they know what the problems are and how these can be fixed,” he said.

Angela du Ponte said she had only received poor service at the Pietersburg Provincial Hospital when taking her mother to get some medication. “The nurses never seem to know what they need to do and if you ask them something they seem to forget and you have to ask them over and over again. No patient can really feel better when visiting the hospital, because just like a lot of the medicine, their patience and understanding is out of stock,” she said.