Premier Mokonyane acts on Charlotte Maxeke

15 Aug 2012

Accompanied by MEC Hope Papo and several officials from the Gauteng Department of Health, Premier of Gauteng Nomvula Mokonyane held a meeting with the Management Advisory Committee (MAC) of the Charlotte Maxeke hospital to investigate damning media reports on the status of operations at the hospital. 

In responding to some of the pertinent and immediate challenges raised by members of MAC, Premier immediately set in motion, steps that will address critical challenges affecting the provisioning of basic health care services from several departments within the health facility.

Of importance, Premier ordered the Provincial Department of Health and the Department of Infrastructure Development (DID) to investigate and implement decisions that were passed in a meeting that she had previously held with the Chief Executive Officers of the major hospitals in Gauteng.

Amongst these, Premier called for a review of procedures related to funding of hospitals in Gauteng, the filling of critical vacancies and the putting in place, all necessary administrative systems that ensured a responsive, reactive and accountable process of mitigating the most elementary of services around the care of patients.  "Whilst the province is working hard to implement the long term turnaround strategy on the provisioning of health care, I believe the immediate need to provide care for patients may not be compromised" said the Premier.

In noting the challenges facing the hospitals and the Department of Health generally, the Premier called for a meeting wherein she would be briefed on infrastructure improvement and procurement procedures on general medication and equipment in the hospital.  All members of MAC will be expected to provide a list of their imminent requirements in their respective departments so that these were acted upon without any delay.

Premier reassured all that the Gauteng Provincial Government would do everything in her might to ensure effective delivery of health care services. "It is important for managers and the medical staff to receive our unwavering support in ensuring that patients receive the utmost of care possible at such massive public hospitals. The need to promptly respond to any form of inadequacies be they related to human resource or infrastructure becomes our priority on which to decisively act at any given time;" said Premier Mokonyane.

It is envisaged that plans to restore sound and effective operational procedures will be implemented immediately after the Premiers' meeting with MAC and relevant officials of the Gauteng Department of Health and the Department of Infrastructure Development.

Statement issued by the Gauteng Office of the Premier, August 15 2012

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