Johannesburg - The Democratic Alliance(DA) on Wednesday called on KwaZulu-Natal Health MEC Sibongiseni Dhlomo to take "immediate action" to resolve nursing and security shortages at the province’s psychiatric hospitals after an unattended patient allegedly stabbed himself to death.
DA KZN Health spokesperson Dr Iman Keeka said the Townhill patient was meant to be on suicide watch and due to the lack of nurses and security, he was left on his own when he stabbed himself in the chest and slit his throat.
"According to the DA’s source at the Pietermaritzburg-based hospital, the incident took place almost 10 days ago after an under-qualified nurse was left in charge of the ward overnight without any nursing staff support or security presence," Dr Keeka said.
"Shockingly, the patient was only discovered, lying in a pool of blood, the next morning during a shift change. He was taken to Grey's hospital where, despite his grave injuries, he has survived."
Dr Keeka said the patient should have been in a "secure or closed ward" but was instead left in a psychotherapy ward.
"This is by no means the first horror story to come out of KwaZulu-Natal’s state-run psychiatric facilities and has again highlighted the result of deficiencies in the availability of qualified nursing staff and also the gross shortage of security.
"Earlier this year the DA highlighted an incident, also at Townhill, in which one patient killed another. In another more recent incident, a highly decorated policeman was tragically killed by an escaped patient from the Madadeni Psychiatric facility in Newcastle."
He said the DA had brought the issue of staffing shortages to the attention of the MEC on numerous occasions but to no avail.
"Given the lack of action to date the DA last week tabled a motion in the KwaZulu-Natal legislature, calling for both the Townhill and Madadeni incidents to be the subject of an internal investigation.
"Some of the questions that require answers include why was the Townhill patient not in the appropriate ward with the appropriate staff? How did the patient obtain the weapon that he used to inflict self-harm? Why was there no security in this ward at the time? Is there a general nursing and security shortage at KZN’s psychiatric facilities?"
Dr Keeka said with only 26 psychiatrists to service more than 2,000 psychiatric beds in KwaZulu-Natal, there was a psychiatry disaster looming.
"This is something that KwaZulu-Natal Premier Willies Mchunu must also heed as he continues to support MEC Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo instead of firing him following the damning findings of the SAHRC [SA Human Rights Commission] into the province’s oncology crisis."
Authorities at the hospital were not immediately available for comment.