Race to fill new hospital posts by end of month

Heads of department, professional nurses, enrolled nurses, nursing assistants, porters and cleaners are some of positions that have been assessed. Picture: Motshwari Mofokeng African News Agency (ANA)

Heads of department, professional nurses, enrolled nurses, nursing assistants, porters and cleaners are some of positions that have been assessed. Picture: Motshwari Mofokeng African News Agency (ANA)

Published Apr 21, 2021

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DURBAN - THE KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health hopes to have completed the hiring process at the Dr Pixley ka Isaka Seme Memorial Hospital in KwaMashu by the end of this month.

This is according to head of department Dr Sandile Tshabalala in an update on the recruitment process at the hospital recently.

Tshabalala said on Friday that there was a process for those who would be hired as cleaners and porters.

“The process will continue. For us, at least by the end of April, we should be done,” said Tshabalala. He said Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane, Premier Sihle Zikalala and the provincial leadership would announce when the hospital would be opened.

Tshabalala assured that the hiring process of heads of the medical departments was nearing a conclusion.

He added that the hospital was a regional facility but that did not mean it was a KwaMashu hospital. It was a KZN Department of Health hospital in KwaMashu.

“Therefore, when we hire, we’ll be hiring people who have the skills that are required in a regional hospital,” Tshabalala explained.

“Let it not seem like just because it’s in KwaMashu it was meant for only people from KwaMashu to be hired.”

He said applicants from Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu areas would get posts, including those in eThekwini, but any and every other skill that was needed, the government would source accordingly.

Simelane recently revealed that the department had received more than 300 000 applications for just over 1 500 posts.

She said at the end of last year they would be hiring management and, once completed, they would move to hire professional nurses.

Last month, thousands of nurses descended on the hospital and planned to ace the written assessment to be hired.

According to the department, they had only called 250 professional nurses to attend the assessment.

Nurses who had attended the assessment on March 23 accused Simelane of lying about only inviting 250 applicants. They also claimed that the department was not ready for them, as only two tents were erected at 9am, anyone was let in, identity documents and SMSes were not checked, nurses were only given 20 minutes to complete the assessment instead of the allocated 45 minutes, and some nurses allegedly cheated by sharing and discussing the assessment paper.

The nurses felt it was an unfair process and appealed for a reassessment.

More than a week ago, Simelane changed her statement and said they had planned for 250 applicants in the morning and another 250 in the afternoon.

Earlier this month, enrolled nurses and enrolled nursing assistants were interviewed.

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Department of Health