Johannesburg -
Gauteng premier Nomvula Mokonyane on Wednesday called for a review of the funding of provincial hospitals and the filling of their critical vacancies.
“While the province is working hard to implement the long-term turnaround strategy on the provisioning of health care, I believe the immediate need to provide care for patients may not be compromised.”
She ordered the provincial health and infrastructure development departments to put into effect decisions made at a recent meeting she had with the CEOs of major hospitals.
Mokonyane's action followed reports about the poor financial management of operations at the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital.
The Democratic Alliance alleged that shortages of staff and equipment at the hospital were leading to the cancellation of about 100 operations a week.
Mokonyane called for a meeting to receive feedback on infrastructure improvement and procurement procedures for general medication and equipment at the hospital.
“It is important for managers and the medical staff to receive our unwavering support in ensuring that patients receive the utmost of care possible at such massive public hospitals,” she said in a statement.
“The need to promptly respond to any form of inadequacies, be they related to human resource or infrastructure, becomes our priority on which to decisively act at any given time.” - Sapa