Following a number of adverse incidents at the four major hospitals in Durban (namely Addington, King Edward VIII, Prince Mshiyeni Memorial and Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospitals), numerous patients and community complaints, the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health has decided to relieve some managers at these hospitals of their current duties and redeploy them to other positions.
This should in no way be misconstrued as a punitive measure but it is an opportunity for the managers to recoup the eroded confidence. The department, in taking this decision, took into consideration the fact that in some instances the environment has not been conducive for managers to perform to their full potential and in some instances the expertise mix required to manage such complex organizations has not been correct.
No one person can be blamed for the dysfunctionality that has become synonymous with these hospitals. We must emphasise that this decision does not only affect hospital chief executive officers (or hospital managers) but we have looked at the management teams and the poor health outcomes at these hospitals as well as the incidences such as lost patients, disappearance of bodies from mortuaries, patients being chased away, etc.
We are currently engaging the affected individuals to negotiate options available to them. At Addington, the CEO opted for early pension, the matter has been finalised there and a new team to take charge will be announced in due course. We are still to finalise discussions with the other affected officials.
Managing a hospital is not an easy task. The environment is complex and it requires a correct mix between technical expertise and managerial expertise. Looking after people from the time they are in the womb to the time they are in a mortuary, is indeed not an easy task for one individual. We therefore are going to try various models and expertise mix to ensure that we find the correct combination to manage hospitals in this province and to achieve our stated targets.
Further announcements will be made in due course.
Issued by: Department of Health, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
21 May 2010
