Turned away from Witbank Hospital
There are rumours that shots were fired, but this however could not be confirmed
Witbank Provincial Hospital use to be a well-respected medical institution, but citizens are slowly losing their trust in its ability to provide healthcare to those in need.
The nurses at Witbank Provincial Hospital are on strike, and the citizens of eMalahleni are reeling.
According to a state medical worker, who would like to stay anonymous “for my own safety” went to Witbank Provincial Hospital on June 11.
“The nurses were still striking but I managed to speak to a few of the doctors in the emergency room. There were about three of them on duty, and the accidents and emergencies section was devoid of patients. The doctors told me that a fight broke out in accidents and emergencies on Saturday between a group of men.”
There are rumours that shots were fired, but this however could not be confirmed.
No cases were opened at Witbank Police Station relating to shots being fired or any other.
“Police did attend, but no arrests were made and no case was opened. Apparently this is why the nurses are striking, because now they feel unsafe at their place of work,” said the anonymous source.
Provincial Secretary of the Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA), Mzwandile Shongwe, spoke to WITBANK NEWS on June 10 in front of Witbank Provincial Hospital where some of the nurses employed at the hospital were striking.
“On Saturday we had an incident where gangsters came from the location and were waving around there guns left and right [in Witbank Provincial Hospital],” explained Shongwe, “we, as workers, have said that we are tired of the issue of safety because we do not want to wait until we lose people. We are not going to work until we are safe here because we have the right to a safe working environment. We have elevated the issue of security to the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) in the province.”
“The means of safety must be improved using technology, such as cameras,” Shongwe elaborated, “but the pace at which things are improving is very slow, and we can’t wait. Patients and workers are unsafe. People think we are only advocating for workers, but we are advocating for the safety of the patients too. We want the Department of Health to improve security; there is no proper control of who can come in and go out of the premises. We want the MEC of the Department of Health to come and sort it out. We will strike until the MEC is here. The MEC has said that he will come on Tuesday, but we want the MEC to come now and address the people. If the MEC can’t sort it out, the premier must come – and if he can’t sort it out, someone above him must come.”
Thabo Mokoena of COSATU House in eMalahleni expressed his disappointment in the manner that the problems at Witbank Provincial Hospital have been handled, stating; “We are calling on government to ensure proper security measures are put in place. Our workers have the right to feel safe and have a safe working environment – they should not be harassed in the line of duty. Health institutions must be institutions of safety. We are calling on the Department of Health to implement the policy discussed at the Health Summit as a matter or urgency. Hospitals should not become a safe haven for criminal activity.”
COSATU House had not issued an official media statement pertaining to the strike at the time of publication.
The office of the MEC of the Department of Health was approached for comment, but had no yet supplied a statement at the time of publication.
The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) were contacted for comment but hadn’t responded at the time of publication.
