Cape Town - The family of a survivor of a car crash which left a young medical intern dead after she allegedly fell asleep behind the wheel after working a very long shift have threatened to take action against the Department of Health.
Two people were critically injured when Ilne Markwat crashed into a barrier before rolling and colliding with two cars in the oncoming lane on the N1 near Klapmuts. The accident occurred at 10am on Friday, June 3.
Markwat succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced dead on arrival at Milnerton Mediclinic.
The injured, Carol Mostert, 45, and her fiancé Johannes Pretorius, 47, were rushed to Tygerberg Hospital, where they are still being treated in its Intensive Care Unit.
Mostert’s sister Janine Schouw contacted the Cape Times at the weekend, saying her family plans to take action against the department, and that they will “do whatever it takes” to hold the department accountable.
Schouw said: “We have an appointment with attorneys, and will be meeting them in the week to discuss the course of action we will be taking against the department.
“We will be going as far as we can go to hold the department accountable.”
Schouw said Mostert had undergone four major surgeries since the crash. She said it was “touch and go” for both her sister and Pretorius.
“It is terrifying to think how many accidents exhausted doctors have caused.
“Then, of course, there’s the threat they (pose) to patients. They are obviously not compos mentis in that state,” Schouw said.
The matter was brought to light recently after a concerned citizen and member of the medical profession, Dr John Roos, wrote a letter to the Cape Times.
Roos used the tragic death of Markwat to highlight doctors’ concerns about the long hours they work.
Markwat, who lived in Durbanville, started her medical internship at Paarl Hospital’s obstetrics unit in January.
Last year, interns lodged complaints to the Junior Doctors’ Association of SA (Judasa) about working long shifts at the unit.
Judasa chairperson Zahid Badroodien said the association remained steadfast in its call for safe working hours for all health professionals.
“Whist the circumstances surrounding the incident remain unclear, we believe the department and HPCSA must come under pressure to review the regulations applied to health professionals. Safe working conditions must be prioritised,” he said
Badroodien said it was common for junior doctors to work shifts beyond 36 hours – from 8am to roughly 4pm the next day.
“This results in an increase in medical errors which can lead to poor patient management,” he said.
Badroodien said interns are “bullied” into disregarding their rights, and are held ransom by the threat of not being approved.
“Nothing is being done to address the current issue. The department wants to extend the working week to include the weekend, and then expects medical staff to work longer and harder.”
He said Judasa was calling for a cap of 24-hour shifts.
Western Cape Department of Health spokesperson Mark van der Heever admitted the department and Health Professions Council of SA’s (HPCSA) had a policy for medical interns to work for up to 30 hours.
“Interns should not exceed 30 hours of continuous work,” Van der Heever said.
National Health Department spokesperson Joe Maila said the department was “looking into” reviewing its policy.
“We acknowledge that young doctors are working long hours. We have the health council looking into how they can adjust the hours that doctors work,” Maila said.
He said the health department would respond to the Mostert family’s complaint once it had been lodged.
HPCSA spokesperson Fezile Sifunda said: “It is imperative that the contractual relationship between doctor and employer is consistent with the Basic Conditions of Employment Act and Conditions of Service that are applicable in the public sector.”
Cape Times