By Zohra Mohamed Teke
KZN Health MEC Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo says the entire management team at Durban's Addington Hospital needs to be overhauled.
Dhlomo is expected to visit the hospital today, after the death of a 52-year-old man in the hospital's waiting room last week - which he said he was unaware of.
Mohamed "Monty" Khan, 52, died while in the waiting room at Addington Hospital polyclinic. He was allegedly prevented by security staff from entering the emergency care unit, despite having an urgent letter of referral from his doctor. Khan had to walk to the polyclinic instead where he collapsed and died a few minutes later.
Shaking his head in disbelief, Dhlomo described the death as "shocking" when told about it by the Daily News during an interview.
Dhlomo said he was awaiting the findings of a national investigation team report into the state of the country's hospitals, but that he would not be surprised if Addington was among those needing a complete change in management.
"We've already dismissed three senior management members from Addington Hospital this year, and there is more to come; we are building our case.
"The entire team needs to be overhauled, as I believe they are responsible for the state of the hospital and its decline. While I understand there are issues of being overworked and understaffed, there is no reason to allow the hospital to reach the stage it has today - and that is down to management.
"Other hospitals that are worse off (for resources), for example the Mahatma Gandhi Hospital, works with far less resources, yet they are able to cope much better," he said.
He had just completed his list of 11 hospitals in the province which had successfully implemented changes needed to "make them look like hospitals".
This is part of a rescue plan created by Dhlomo last year to deliver quality health care by improving staff attitudes, cleanliness, safety and security, accessibility, reduced waiting times and infection control.
Among those making the list include Stanger Hospital, Pietermaritzburg's Greys Hospital, Port Shepstone Hospital and Ladysmith Hospital. He is expected to announce the addition of 11 hospitals, including clinics, to the list at the end of the month.
Dhlomo has vowed to root out corruption in the health sector, including his department, saying it should not be swept under the carpet, but tackled head on as that was the only way to improve the public perception of government's service delivery.
KZN has the highest rate of HIV deaths in the country, as well as the highest maternal and TB related deaths nationally.
Dhlomo leaves for Malaysia later today, where he is due to finalise agreements with his Malaysian counterpart to bring a team of doctors and nurses to South Africa to train local health practitioners on how to use a "Tara Klamp" - a circumcision device made in Malaysia which reduces the risk of cross infection.