WATCH: Mayor says Phelophepa Healthcare Train is making a huge impact

Published Apr 14, 2021

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DURBAN - ETHEKWINI mayor Mxolisi Kaunda said the Transnet-Phelophepa Healthcare Train was making a positive impact in the lives of disadvantaged communities.

The Phelophepa Healthcare Train, currently stationed at Phoenix railway station, provides primary health care services to those who cant afford to pay for health care. The train will depart on April 16, 2021.

“The impact this programme is making is huge and its positive. People are starting to receive glasses, they get assessed today and get their glasses today,” he said.

He said this speaks to the quality and efficiency of service.

“We are happy that communities are starting to realise that the government, with the private sector and with the public entity Transnet, can do wonders when we collaborate,” said Kaunda.

Senior manager of the health portfolio at the Transnet Foundation Shamona Kandia said the train was part of the corporate social responsibility arm of Transnet.

The train offers dental, optometry and psychological services, with a focus on primary health.

“We have a fully fledged health clinic that is staffed by nurses and, of course, we have our own onboard pharmacies to dispense medication to support the prognosis that our patients would reach here,” said Kandia.

Kandia added that the train has a special onboard laboratory for vision screening. She said they have the technology to manufacture the spectacles within 25 minutes and immediately dispense it.

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