South Africa: The Premier of Free State, Maqueen Letsoha-Mathae visited the Bongani Hospital in Welkom as a part of the monitoring visits to health centres. She interacted with the patients at the hospital and some of the members of the staff.
The Premier also assessed the facilities of the hospital including state of infrastructure, personnel and broad service standards during her visit. She expressed that she was not happy to see the state of the infrastructure at the hospital.
During her visit, the Premier said that many patients expressed serious disappointment on the quality of services at the hospital. She revealed that the patients who rely on patient transportation informed her that often times they have to wait for over five hours for transport to fare them home after receiving medical attention.
The Premier said that she was very disappointed to see the inhumane treatment of patients. She noted that she was especially concerned for the treatment people living with disabilities and special needs.
Premier Maqueen Letsoha-Mathae said that she was extremely concerned after she received reports of ill treatment of patients. She clarified that she has also observed these instances during her visut to the hospital.
She also highlighted other issues that she observed during the visit, including laxity, and unprofessional conduct by some officials. She has pledged to add.ress the issue in the most affective manner.
Accordingly, Premier Letsoha-Mathae said “This ends now! As of today, those responsible for such conduct will be charged and ultimately dismissed. Our people deserve dignity and compassionate care.”
Premier Letsoha-Mathae has initiated a comprehensive program to inspect healthcare facilities across the province.
She had taken the initiative to visit all the health facilities within the province. The visit started in the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality where she visited Pelonomi and National Hospital in Bloemfontein.
Afterwards, the followed by Dr JS Moroka Hospital in Thaba Nchu and Botshabelo Hospital. During these visits, the Premier observed troubling infrastructure conditions and leadership challenges, highlighting the need for immediate intervention.
“The state of our healthcare infrastructure is concerning,” Premier Letsoha-Mathae stated. “With the exception of a few institutions, urgent measures are required to address the poor conditions in many hospitals and clinics.” She affirmed that the Executive Council (EXCO) will swiftly process observations and implement mechanisms to rectify these issues.