Ngwelezana Hospital escapes lab service suspension

THE suspension of National Health Laboratory (NHLS) services to the KZN Health Department will not affect the Ngewelezana Hospital, says District Health Department spokesperson Sibongiseni Manqele.

Following reports of unpaid bills totalling R3-billion by the province, the NHLS did not pick up blood or tissue samples from 700 clinics across the province last week.

‘NHLS has suspended the collection and transportation of blood and other specimens from clinics. Ngwelezana Hospital, however, is using its own transport to collect samples. Laboratory services are fully operational and all tests sent to the laboratory are processed in time,’ says Manqele

But elsewhere, the news is dire for patients who rely on the public health system, fearing that delayed screening would mean delayed treatment, which in cases such as HIV and cervical cancer, can prove fatal.

The suspension of specimen collection services are expected to begin with primary healthcare clinics and subsequently progress to community health centres and specialised hospitals. This will be followed by the suspension of diagnostic pathology services at laboratories supporting district hospitals and then finally the regional hospitals, provincial tertiary hospitals and national central hospitals.

‘The KZN Health Department is dealing with the matter,’ Manqele said.