Patient-on-patient violence in Western Cape health facilities bulk of reported complaints

Last week, a patient at Karl Bremer Hospital was attacked by another patient with a sharp and heavy object and subsequently died. Picture: Ian Landsberg/AfricanNews Agency (ANA)

Last week, a patient at Karl Bremer Hospital was attacked by another patient with a sharp and heavy object and subsequently died. Picture: Ian Landsberg/AfricanNews Agency (ANA)

Published Sep 15, 2022

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Cape Town - Patient-on-patient violence made up the bulk of complaints reported to the Department of Health and Wellness Safety Unit, with more than half of reported cases, followed by patient-on-staff attacks.

The department’s Safety Unit, which reports on such incidents on a quarterly basis, saw 92 incidents of physical assault reported across provincial health facilities during the first quarter of the financial year, the period April to June 2022.

Department spokesperson Mark van der Heever said the most reported incidents were: patient-on-patient (51); patient-on-hospital staff (17); patient towards security (10); visitor towards patient (3); and visitor towards visitor (2).

Other incidents reported were minor in numbers, and therefore not described.

It was during this period in which three people, including a police officer, were shot dead by a patient at the New Somerset Hospital in early May.

Last week, a patient at Karl Bremer Hospital was attacked by another patient with a sharp and heavy object and subsequently died, prompting an immediate visit by Health MEC Nomafrench Mbombo.

Van der Heever expressed concern over several other incidents of threatening and verbal abuse towards staff.

“Our facilities are places of healing, and we condemn any form of violence or criminal activity within our facilities or on our premises. We have security on site, with their main function to assist with perimeter and access control.

“These are health facilities, a place where the sick, injured and vulnerable are cared for and should not be seen as a place where violence should be committed.”

Nursing organisation Denosa Western Cape’s provincial secretary Jaco van Heerden said health care workers were not adequately protected.

“Safety of staff is a trending matter at the Chamber meetings. The employer indicated at our last engagement that nurses must search the clients. When we objected to that view, they withdrew their statements.

Our view is that staff safety is not a priority.”

Van Heerden said there has been an exponential increase in incidents.

“The representative of the employer is disconnected from reality and their duty to ensure a safe work environment. We propose a root causes analysis to deal with the safety issues but no commitment to deal with the issues they report on like arguments, assault patients on patients.

“If they do, under-staffing will be exposed (and) long waiting times,” Van Heerden said.

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Cape Argus