Community demands improved health services during Health Sectoral Parliament
The delivery of health services in the Moretele Municipality, North West province was in the spotlight during the North West Legislature Health Sectoral Parliament held in Makapanstad on Saturday, 12 March 2016. The Health Sectoral Parliament was assembled to allow direct beneficiaries of health services to evaluate the level of service being rendered at the 24 health facilities in the area.
Health Portfolio Committee Chairperson, Mr. Nono Maloyi said the legislature went to Makapanstad to assess health infrastructure and to allow community to speak directly to legislators about their health concerns and to allow health authorities to give direct response to community concerns.
The community raised their displeasure especially with regard to clinics not operating for 24 hours. Ms. Mapule Mafafo, who spoke on behalf of the community, complained about shortage of medication and nurses in some health facilities.
“We cannot have clinics operating for only eight to twelve hours a day as diseases and injuries don’t make appointment when they occur,” she said.
Ms Mafafo said Lefatlheng clinic does not enough chairs for waiting patients. She urged the department to find a long lasting solution to deal with long queues and distribution of medication.
The Department of Health delegation led by Professor John Tumbo told the community of Meretele that the department aims to achieve a long and healthy life for all citizens of the Province.
Responding directly to community concerns regarding delivery of health services, Professor Tumbo said the department would love to have all health facilities in the province operating 24 hours but due to the current pool nurses available that cannot be achieved immediately.
Professor Tumbo said the department continues to employ innovative solutions to address health deficiencies in the province.
On the delivery of medication he said the department has resolved to cut red tape by allowing hospitals to order medication directly from manufactures. This will allow swift response and delivery of medication to facilities compared to previous arrangement which saw all facilities in the province relying on the medical depot based in Mahikeng for ordering and delivery of medication, he said.
“The department is piloting home medication supply for chronic patients to reduce long queues at health facilities,” he said.
He said the department is also implementing a planned patient transport which sees patients being transported to clinics and later transported home after all procedures are completed.
To reduce child and maternal mortality, the department has built maternity waiting homes in various health facilities to house pregnant women especially those at risk weeks before delivery. This allows health professionals to monitor both the mother and the baby in the last stages of pregnancy, he said.
The MEC for Health in the Province, Dr Magome Masike assured the community of a commitment towards improvinghealth services while equally encouraging them to be partakers in their own health. "We have a very unpleasant situation where resources are shrinking but on the other hand the number of people getting sick is increasing.
This calls for all us to work together for better health outcomes. Our communities must help in preventing the spread of diseases, avoid risky lifestyles and stay healthy. Similarly, the Department will work hard to bring health services to our people", said MEC Masike.
Enquiries:
Tebogo Lekgethwane
Cell: 082 929 9958
E-mail: tlekgethwane@nwpg.gov.za
