The IFP in KwaZulu-Natal calls on the MEC of Health, Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo,
to urgently investigate and conduct an audit on staff shortages in
provincial hospitals, following reports that cleaners in Mbongolwane
Hospital, in Eshowe, are in charge of handing out medication to patients due
to staff shortages.

"This situation is of high risk because cleaners are not trained to be
professional nurses, they are only qualified to clean the hospital not to do
the job of professional staff. This practice puts patients’ lives at risks.
What if they give the wrong medication to patients? This must be urgently
investigated by the Department of Health and rectified," said IFP
Spokesperson on Health, Mrs Ncamisile Nkwanyana, MPL.

"The budget allocation for rural hospitals must be reviewed and expenditure
patterns must be investigated after the Mbongolwane hospital management
claimed that they cannot hire staff due to financial constraints. This begs
the question of how hospitals are managing their funds. We demand that MEC
Dhlomo must consider the importance of budget adjustments for rural
hospitals in order for them to cope with their daily work," continued Mrs
Nkwanyana.

"We demand that staff must be appointed in Mbongolwane Hospital as thousands
of qualified nurses in KwaZulu-Natal, and in other provinces, are unemployed
even though this country is facing a shortage of health professionals. If
there are funded vacant posts at hospitals, they must be filled without
delay. If people who have undergone nurse training are unemployed, students
will begin to choose other courses with higher employment potential,"
concluded Mrs Nkwanyana.

Issued by the IFP