The Gauteng Department of Health says it has no official report of an ambulance being hijacked by private security personnel at South Rand Hospital, following allegations circulating on social media that a patient was inside the vehicle at the time.

The newspaper contacted the hospital and the Department after a social media post published on September 16 raised concerns about an alleged security incident at the facility. The post claimed that at about 14:00, security personnel at South Rand Hospital had “hijacked” an ambulance while a patient were inside. It also alleged that the security personnel had not been paid.

The post further claimed that the ambulance, with the patient and officer inside, had to leave the hospital. It raised additional concerns about security at the facility, alleging that people and patients were moving around the hospital unchecked and that there was no security at the casualty department.

Department says no ambulance hijacking was reported

Department of Health spokesperson Steve Mabona said the Department was not aware of any alleged hijacking of an ambulance by security personnel at South Rand Hospital.

“No such incident has been officially reported to the Department,” Mabona said. He said preliminary enquiries indicated that the interaction referred to in the allegations appeared to have been a non-violent interaction between EMS personnel and private security guards.

According to the Department, the information available to it indicated that the interaction was not an incident involving hospital staff or hospital assets inside the facility.

The Department also said it had not received any report confirming that a patient was inside an ambulance during an alleged hijacking.

Mabona said no patient safety incident relating to the alleged hijacking had been reported to the Department. There was therefore no information indicating that patient safety had been compromised in connection with the alleged incident.

The Department also said it had no official information confirming that an ambulance had been hijacked or subsequently recovered.

No hijacking case reported to SAPS

The Department’s preliminary enquiries indicated that private security guards were involved in an interaction with EMS personnel, but Mabona said it was understood to have been non-violent.

He said no case relating to an alleged ambulance hijacking had been reported to hospital management for referral to the SAPS.

The Department therefore said it could not confirm the alleged hijacking or an ambulance recovery linked to the claims circulating on social media.

Security guards’ unpaid salaries linked to labour dispute

While the Department disputed having received an official report of an ambulance hijacking, it confirmed that there is a separate labour dispute involving Mjayeli Security Company and its employees over the non-payment of salaries.

Mjayeli is the contracted private security service provider. Mabona said the payment of the security personnel was an internal labour matter between Mjayeli and its employees. He said the Department did not determine or manage the payment of salaries to employees of the private security company.

The Department could not confirm how long the security personnel had allegedly gone without payment, saying it did not have verified information on the duration of the alleged non-payment.

The Department confirmed that it was aware of the labour dispute involving Mjayeli security guards, including a picket at South Rand Hospital.

Matter escalated to provincial office

Mabona said the Department had treated the labour dispute as a breach of contract and escalated the matter to the Provincial Office for further attention in accordance with the contractual arrangements.

The Department stressed that the alleged ambulance incident and the labour dispute were separate matters.

It said there was no official report confirming that security personnel had hijacked an ambulance, while the dispute involving the contracted security company’s employees was being dealt with through the appropriate contractual channels.

Mabona said the Department remained committed to ensuring the safety of patients, staff and visitors at its healthcare facilities.

The Department said it would continue addressing the contractual matter while maintaining its commitment to patient safety and the uninterrupted provision of healthcare services.