By Louise Flanagan and Sapa
Hospitals and clinics that fail to put patient treatment first and don't meet set standards face closure as part of a major crackdown.
Yesterday, Deputy Health Minister Molefi Sefularo launched his department's plan to revamp public and private health facilities, which includes hospitals and clinics - a move seen as a big step towards the introduction of a National Health Insurance (NHI) system.
"The areas we have committed ourselves to turn around are improving patient safety, strengthening infection prevention and control, ensuring the availability of essential medicines and supplies, reducing waiting times, ensuring the cleanliness of our facilities, and spreading a positive and caring attitude throughout the system," Sefularo pointed out.
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This, he said, would be done through a national set of standards currently being drawn up and to be implemented by an independent health watchdog body that is still to be established.
The National Health Act will be amended to create the watchdog body, which will report to Parliament either directly or through the health minister.
It would have wide-ranging powers, including the ability to shut down private or public facilities it deemed unfit.
The national standards it would uphold were still being formulated at a quality summit currently under way in Boksburg. These would be presented to the National Health Council soon.
"These core standards reflect the basic requirements expected of all managers for us to provide safe and decent care in South Africa," Sefularo said.
"The very first standards cover the expectation that patients are treated with respect and dignity. To those using our public services, the attitude of our staff, the environment within which they are treated and the length of time they have to wait are at the top of the list of their expected performance.
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