Johannesburg - An elderly Joburg man was left speechless when he was told he’d have to wait eight months before he could have his knee X-rayed at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital.
But, after The Star’s intervention, Bernard Price, 86, was to have his left knee X-rayed on Thursday.
Price, 86, had been admitted to the hospital at the weekend, to be treated for fluid on the knee.
He was discharged and told to go to the hospital’s X-ray department to determine what line of treatment would be required.
Price, who uses two walking sticks to get around – albeit slowly – is the building superintendent of the Joubert Park block of flats he lives in.
Without urgent treatment of his knee problem, he is afraid he may not be able to carry out his duties, which involve moving about to sort out the needs of the tenants in the building.
“I can’t get around like I should. It was brought on by a fall about 10 days ago outside the lifts at the building. When I was told they couldn’t take the X-ray till May 6, 2016, I was disappointed because I am fairly active, and from what I can glean, it looks like I need a knee replacement,” he said.
But X-rays aren’t the only things one has to wait a long time for at Charlotte Maxeke.
In June, it was revealed in a written response by Gauteng Health MEC Qedani Mahlangu to DA MPL Jack Bloom’s questions in the legislature that 2 246 patients were on waiting lists for surgery at the hospital, of whom 1 500 need a kidney transplant.
“I understand and know there are waiting lists… if I had cash available, I would go to another hospital, but I don’t. And I thought, if this is what’s happening to me, it must be happening to others who need X-rays,” Price said.
He added he was treated well at a hospital ward over the weekend, but that treatment depended on which ward one went to.
“Some of the nurses are mediocre, but some do show concern,” he noted.
Department of Health spokesman Steve Mabona said they were shocked to hear that Price had been advised to visit the hospital in May next year for X-rays.
“This process is performed immediately to assess the severity and to determine the medical treatment required.
“We have already made an arrangement with the patient to visit the hospital tomorrow (Thursday) so that the X-ray can be taken,” he said.
Mabona added that Mahlangu had instructed the hospital’s chief executive to launch an investigation and provide a detailed report on the circumstances surrounding Price’s case.
Price thanked The Star for its efforts to get him help.
Other backlogs
In June, Gauteng Health MEC Qedani Mahlangu admitted there were backlogs for patients waiting for surgery at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital, due to limited theatre time.
There was also a dire shortage of equipment and intensive care unit beds, donor shortages for live transplants and booked patients not showing up for surgery, she explained.
The hospital had to defer about 355 operations due to limited resources and “the lack of co-operation from some booked patients”.
It was also revealed that:
* The expected waiting time for the 1 500 patients who need kidney transplants is six years.
* The 100 patients who need liver transplants should expect to wait anything from six months to a year for surgery.
* The 50 patients waiting for a heart bypass operation have to wait six to 18 months for surgery. l Breast cancer patients have to wait about two weeks for surgery.
The Star