Dr Harry Surtie Hospital fast becoming obsolete

20 April 2021

The failure of the Dr Harry Surtie Hospital in Upington, to supply a 12-year-old diabetic boy with the required type of insulin, has again shone the spotlight on the dismal state of healthcare at the regional facility.

The hospital has been plagued by complaints of poor service delivery, despite being opened seven years ago. What was once termed as a state-of-the-art hospital, is rapidly becoming obsolete.

The boy, who was most recently staying with his grandparents in the Western Cape, in order to be treated by a specialist, has come home with a prescription for a specific type of insulin and testing strips. The Dr Harry Surtie hospital, however, doesn’t have the test strips. It may also not order the specific type of insulin the boy requires, and even if they could, the budget doesn’t allow for it. The family is therefore left with no choice but to have the correct medicine sent from the Western Cape.

The hospital recommends that the boy, who suffers from type 1 diabetes, uses insulin meant for type 2 diabetes. The boy has already suffered possible liver and kidney damage due to suffering from poor blood sugar levels for about three years, he cannot afford further substandard care.

The same family suffered a double blow at the hands of the hospital after the grandfather recently suffered a heart attack. He is waiting to be referred to Bloemfontein for an angiogram. Patients apparently don’t receive anything to drink and meals sometimes consist only of bread, and maybe eggs, if in stock. The family further had to leave blankets and cushions for him at security, because the hospital doesn’t have.

As sad, disappointing and wrong as the situation is, it is not new.

The regional facility has to date operationalised only 227 beds against the available 327 beds and has been hamstrung by staff and resources shortages. It also still refers many patients, even those in need of mammograms, because it doesn’t have specialised staff.

The DA calls on the Health MEC, Maruping Lekwene, to look into arrangements as to how the provincial health department can procure the required insulin for rural areas to ensure that Northern Cape residents who suffer from diabetes and require this medication have access to it.

The people of Upington desperately need a quality hospital, not a glorified clinic, to service their life-threatening medical needs.

Issued by Harold McGluwa, DA Northern Cape Provincial Leader, 20 April 2021