Pretoria - The Gauteng Department of Health says the process of instituting a multi-vendor approach in response to the recent supply constraints of certain food items at various health facilities is at an advanced stage.
Spokesperson Motalatale Modiba said Gauteng Department of Health has reviewed the previous practice of contracting a single supplier for a broad range of items, which has proved to be the main contributing factor leading to inconsistent food supply to hospitals.
“The process to appoint multiple suppliers is in its final stages to ensure that patient care is not compromised by service providers who lack the required capacity to meet the needs of facilities,” said Modiba.
Since the beginning of the year, some health facilities in Gauteng faced food supply challenges in varying degrees involving items such as dairy products, red meat, fish, bread and vegetables.
Albeit these supply challenges, the Gauteng Department of Health has reassured families of patients and the public that in instances where a specific food item was unavailable, other arrangements were made to ensure sustained diet for patients.
“For example, items such as dumpling, mash potatoes and bread would be served in place of rice, pap and meal rice, while for the replacement of chicken, pilchards, macaroni and cheese and beans would be used. Since the department embarked on the review process, several service providers have voluntarily terminated their contracts, attributing this to capacity constraints.
“This then prompted the Gauteng Department of Health to allow institutions, as an interim measure, to procure food items on RFQ (request for quotation) to ensure unrestricted and sustained food supply for patients. Furthermore, it has been observed that a few hospitals faced issues pertaining to timely payments to suppliers.
“However, the main issue remains the limited capacities of contracted service providers who are unable to keep up with the demands of the facilities in terms of the orders being made,” said Modiba.
As the finalisation of enlisting multiple service providers is underway, the Gauteng Department of Health is closely monitoring the situation to ensure that patient care “is in no way affected” during this transitional phase.
IOL