Pretoria - Let us help you reduce the number of South Africans needing hospitals by letting us improve and plug the shortfall in primary health care.
Desperate pleas of young unemployed and fully qualified dieticians and nutritionists could be heard outside the locked down entrance of the Department of Health Civitas building along Thabo Sehume street in Pretoria central earlier today.
The young professionals said they were tired of hearing news of the shortfall of doctors and other specialists in the country, whilst they were left out to form part of the countless millions of youth battling with unemployment.
Kholofelo Selapa, a registered dietician, said despite having been qualified since 2017, she along with others had been unemployed and they wanted to make the minister aware of their plight.
Selapa said another group of dieticians had come to plead with the department and even submitted a memorandum in June 2017 but they were still awaiting a response from the department.
Young, unemployed and fully qualified dieticians and nutritionists dsemonstrate outside the Department of Health. Video: Goitsemang Tlhabye
She said, as a result, most of them had given up because they felt nothing was forthcoming, with very limited vacancies posted for their profession.
“This year we only saw four posts advertised and yet there are over 200 of us in need of jobs.”
Skhumbuzo Chauke, who completed his studies in 2016 at the University of Limpopo, said it was embarrassing for him to be sitting home unable to help his family after they took their last money to put him through tertiary education.
“At clinic level, there are no dieticians or nutritionists which are supposed to be there to do prevention of different conditions which are missed and they end up at a hospital.”
“Most conditions that led up to people ending up in hospital could be treated and prevented early on if professionals like us were placed in employment, instead we are just sitting at home.”
The young professionals said they would remain outside the department’s doorstep until someone heeded their call for help.