DURBAN - An uMlazi-born doctor will take over as the new chief executive of Durban’s King Edward VIII Hospital following the retirement of Dr Mandla Mazizi.
The appointment, which was announced yesterday by Health MEC Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo, will become effective tomorrow.
Dr Thami Mayise, 41, is one of the youngest hospital chief executives in the province and has previously been in charge of Prince Mshiyeni Memorial, RK Khan, Newcastle Regional and Niemeyer Memorial.
Mayise said he was “honoured and privileged” to be given a chance to take charge of the 83-year-old hospital, and vowed to work inclusively, and in partnership, with various relevant stakeholders.
“I’d like to thank the MEC and the department for entrusting me with this task, and also to thank them for the work that’s been done to repair the damage caused by the storm and to improve the infrastructure of King Edward,” he said.
Dhlomo welcomed Mayise and thanked the provincial government and cabinet for recruiting a “younger” chief executive to lead the hospital.
“It’s our wish and hope that he’s going to take this hospital to greater heights, being one of our central hospitals in the province,” Dhlomo said.
The hospital is undergoing multimillion-rand repairs to certain critical sections which were damaged by a severe storm in October 2017.
Dhlomo said the department was confident in Mayise’s ability and would also assist him to navigate through the hospital’s challenges.
“There are many challenges with King Edward, but if you take a leader like Dr Mayise, you’re very confident that he’s going to be able to meet the challenges,” he said.
Dhlomo said that after the storms, which saw some of the roofs blown off, there had been a significant improvement in the reconstruction of the hospital.
“We are at almost 98% with the completion of S block. We still have the remaining theatres in S block, the high care and ICU still to be repaired. There’s been progress in the maternity O-ward, and O-1 ward.
“I’m informed that by the end of February, almost all those will have been completed,” said Dhlomo.