‘Eight months for a 15-minute operation’
The 81-year-old Frans Botha's life has not been the same after he stumbled into a coffee table in September last year and needed to be operated on.
He told Polokwane Observer he was immediately taken to the Pietersburg Provincial Hospital where he was examined by a doctor who confirmed that he had sustained a fracture.
“As much as I was afraid to get admitted into the hospital at the peak of Covid-19, I availed myself for surgery to have the fracture repaired, but from the first day I was told the hospital had a shortage of beds and that I could not be admitted.”
He has had to use a wheelchair to get around since, and struggles to get around.
According to Botha, he suffers pain which also affects his sleep, and he has had to rely on his daughter to help him with basic functions around the house.
“Getting information or follow-ups from the hospital is difficult. I was told by a doctor that the surgery would not take more than 15 minutes, so I don’t understand why I would have to wait more than eight months for a 15-minute surgery.” Botha says he tried to lay an official complaint with the hospital manager but nothing has come out of it.
Approached for comment, Departmental Spokesperson Neil Shikwambana said Botha’s case is one of many that have been caused by the recent backlog in orthopaedic surgeries. He could not provide a timeline of how soon Botha would be scheduled for surgery.
