SIYABONGA SITHOLE
Dr Tim de Maayer has been slapped with a written warning by the management of Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital following his explosive open letter early this year.
The paediatrician, who wrote an open letter in May detailing the deteriorating standard of health care at the Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital, was given a written warning after he was placed on precautionary suspension in June. However, the DA said that after his reinstatement, De Maayer was given a written warning for exposing issues that contributed to the death of children due to lack of sanitation, load shedding and broken machines at the facility.
DA spokesperson on health Jack Bloom said the issue of De Maayer was revealed to him by acting Health MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko in a written reply at the Gauteng legislature.
At the height of De Maayer's suspension and following several calls to lift the suspension, the MEC organised a meeting between the hospital management and De Maayer in which the parties agreed to lift his suspension after a “fruitful and amicable” meeting between the parties involved. However, responding to news of the written warning given to De Maayer, the DA said it was unfair as the paediatrician was acting in good faith when he revealed the lack of care by the facility's management.
Bloom says according to the acting health MEC, the hospital’s CEO, Dr Nozuko Mkabayi, took the decision to suspend him for “transgression of internal communications policy and the Public Services code of conduct”.
The DA says Mkabayi’s role in the suspension was “sanctioning the inception of the disciplinary process (precautionary suspension letter to enable an unhindered investigation)”.
Nkomo-Ralehoko says that after the withdrawal of his suspension the “parties agreed on the issuing of a written warning”.
“I think it is outrageous that Dr De Maayer was sanctioned for following his conscience in exposing how terrible hospital conditions led to the deaths of his young patients,” Bloom said.
Bloom said it was unfair that no disciplinary action had been taken against the hospital CEO for her vindictiveness against de Maayer as Nkomo-Ralehoko said “the department has not yet established any wrongdoing by the CEO”.
The DA said it believed that disciplinary action against the CEO was warranted, as well as effective measures to fix the problems identified by De Maayer.
The Star