Dying diggers of Namaqualand need saving
by Harold McGluwa – DA Northern Cape Provincial Chairperson & Chief Whip of the Provincial Caucus
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Date: 10 July 2018
Release: Immediate
The DA is calling on the Northern Cape Health MEC, Fufe Makatong, to urgently intervene and solve the deteriorating health situation in Louisvale where residents are being forced to make use of a local clinic that is understaffed, lacks proper medication and is manned by a doctor who struggles to communicate with patients.
The challenges facing Louisvale clinic came to light after an oversight inspection I conducted following reports of poor health service delivery.
Aside from ensuring that the facility is properly equipped to ensure a proper primary health care service, the MEC must take concrete steps to bridge the language barrier that exists between the Cuban doctor and the local patients. Relatedly, the limited hours of work being put in by the doctor needs to be addressed as it is inhibiting health services.
The situation at Louisvale clinic is so bad that one particular patient, Mrs Brand, was forced to seek private medical treatment for her painful leg as a result of regressing health services at the clinic. The nurses at the clinic were aware of Mrs Brand’s condition since June but hadn’t been in a position to treat her for weeks.
Louisvale is an impoverished community, with high levels of unemployment. Community members struggle to put bread on the table, let alone foot exorbitant medical costs. As such, asking them to seek private healthcare is not only inhumane but is evidence of how the ANC led government continues to fail poor people.
It is preposterous that the poorest of the poor are being sidelined by government healthcare, particularly in our more rural areas.
The ANC government is ignoring the plight of our most vulnerable people. They simply don’t have the political will to prioritise health care for those most in need.
Only a DA-led government can bring change that will ensure that healthcare is prioritised in all corners of the province for all people.
Media Enquiries
Harold McGluwa
DA Northern Cape Provincial Chairperson & Chief Whip of the Provincial Caucus
082 440 1779
Chrystal Limburgh
Researcher
079 226 0991
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