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The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Northern Cape condemns the alleged rape of a 19 year old female patient by a 32-year old male patient at the Professor ZK Matthews Community Health Centre (CHC) in Barkley West over the weekend.

We are horrified that such a vicious crime was able to take place at a government health facility in the Northern Cape.

Hospitals and CHC’s are places of refuge, where the poorest of the poor come to seek medical care and recover in a safe environment. The sick and injured certainly do not present at health facilities with one ailment, only to have to leave more broken and traumatised than when they arrived.

The DA notes that the Northern Cape Health Department is investigating the matter. The problem however, is that this incident must not be treated as an isolated incident. The level of security at health facilities across South Africa and in this province, from our tertiary hospital in Kimberley to the regional and district hospitals, including the CHS’s and even clinics, is lacking.

The DA will be requesting the health department to conduct an assessment of security measures and services provided at all health facilities in the Northern Cape. This assessment should include the costs of private security services, who are contracted by the department. It will also be important to know how many health support staff are on duty in the facilities at all times, as it is critical that there is adequate supervision over patients.

In the meantime, the DA will also be conducting our own informal investigation into security measures at public health facilities in the province. It is important that this matter is taken very seriously as it not only places the lives of patients but also all health workers at risk.

Issued by The DA