Tag: medical careers

Categories : CancerTags :

Radiation Therapy Graduates Unplaced for Six Months by Health Department

On By ModernMedia
Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

A number of radiation therapy graduates, who must by law complete the Department of Health’s Internship and Community Service Programme in order to practise medicine, say they have been waiting for nearly six months to be placed in hospitals.

They have finished their four-year studies and now need to complete a year-long internship, referred to as Comserve, in order to register and practice as medical professionals. Their primary role is to administer radiation treatment to patients with cancer.

The community service programme is administered by the National Department of Health.

“We are left in limbo, not sure when we will receive a post,” a graduate from the Western Cape, who wished to be anonymous, told GroundUp. He said that they’ve been told since the beginning of the year by Comserve officials that they are engaging with provinces to secure them placements.

He shared correspondence that said he was not yet allocated a position “due to the unavailability of funded posts”.

He said that it was “frustrating” that they are required by law to do Comserve yet the department cannot find them posts.

“We are all stressed out … We still have bills to pay from university. We are squatting with our parents. We were promised we were going to have a job after studying and now we can’t apply for other jobs. Our hands are cut off. We can’t do anything,” he said.

He said he knew of about nine other radiation therapists also waiting for placements.

Another graduate, from KwaZulu-Natal, said the lack of placement risked creating a backlog when next year’s graduates need to do Comserve.

“At the end of the day, our cancer patients are going to suffer … They need us and we have trained specifically to help them,” she said.

The failure to place graduates is happening despite staff shortages in radiation oncology departments in Gauteng.

On 30 April activists from SECTION27, Cancer Alliance and the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) as well as cancer patients marched to the offices of the Gauteng department of health demanding that millions of rands set aside for radiation treatment be used.

In an open letter addressed to health MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko, the organisations provided a backlog list of about 3000 patients awaiting radiation oncology treatment.

Salomé Meyer of the Cancer Alliance says there are radiation oncology staff shortages in Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital and Steve Biko Academic Hospital.

Both graduates GroundUp spoke to had applied to Charlotte Maxeke for their Comserve year.

In December 2023, the national department stated that nearly 10 400 Comserve applications were received. Of these just shy of 9400 applicants “were successfully placed, and this includes medical doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other health professionals at health facilities throughout the country”.

National Department of Health spokesperson Foster Mohale sent GroundUp an incoherent and incomplete WhatsApp response. “We only know those who were placed. We can’t tell those who were not placed because we are not sure of their career plans,” he wrote.

Asked about staff shortages, Mohale wrote that the department “prioritises all critical posts using limited budget”.

The Gauteng Department of Health did not respond to our questions about radiology therapist Comserve placements and staff shortages in its hospitals, despite committing to do so and repeated follow-ups.

Republished from GroundUp under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Read the original article

Categories : HospitalsTags :

Opinion piece: Specialist TES Providers Optimising Healthcare Operations – a Prescription for Patient Care Success

On By ModernMedia

By Sandra Sampson, Director at Allmed

Sandra Sampson

The healthcare sector in South Africa is beset with numerous challenges, ranging from high turnover rates to skilled staffing shortages and complex regulations in addition to stressful working environments, and communication barriers.

Despite these formidable obstacles, patients have the right to expect top-tier care from their medical facilities. Here, specialised Temporary Employment Services (TES) providers can become indispensable partners, adeptly assisting medical facilities to navigate these challenges in their quest to ensure a seamless continuum of care.

Streamlining healthcare staffing to counter shortages

Specialist TES providers offer a multifaceted remedy to the relentless staffing challenges in healthcare. Capable of promptly supplying temporary staff to bridge immediate gaps, TES providers ensure that all resources have already been rigorously screened, recruiting qualified professionals to function as a buffer against high turnover and staffing scarcities. Through tailored training, specialist providers ensure that their temporary staff placements align seamlessly with organisational expectations to consistently uphold care standards. Furthermore, specialist TES providers alleviate the burden of complex healthcare regulations on management and staff by taking on the responsibility of handling the entire employment relationship, from end to end, including managing human resources and labour relations components, as well as payroll. This provides significant relief for healthcare facilities giving them the staffing resources that they need, without the additional administrative complexities involved with recruiting, on-boarding and managing such resources.

Addressing skills gaps to raise the bar on healthcare resources

Maintaining consistent levels of patient care without compromising quality is challenging in the face of staffing shortages and high turnover rates. With so many specialised healthcare staff, including ICU personnel, leaving for better opportunities abroad due to financial considerations, such an exodus necessitates urgent strategies to retain and fill gaps within healthcare facilities. Specialist TES providers are already playing a critical role in addressing these concerns by focusing on nurse competencies and facilitating targeted courses to upskill their resources. These courses address critical gaps in patient safety and empower nurses to provide better care. Through the development of these essential courses, such as ECG interpretation and cannulation, TES providers are taking significant steps to ensure nurses possess the necessary skills and knowledge. This proactive approach not only enhances patient care at a facility level, but also contributes to nurse competence and job satisfaction, ultimately benefiting the healthcare ecosystem.

The strategic advantages of enhancing workforce dynamics

In addition to operational bolstering and sector-specific upskilling, specialist healthcare TES providers present strategic benefits for healthcare facilities. Access to a diverse, extensive talent pool makes it simpler for medical organisations to find the ideal fit for each role, effectively mitigating the risk of hiring mismatches usually associated with permanent placements. Medical facilities also benefit from the cost-effectiveness of the TES operating model, which aligns with the dynamic nature of healthcare to optimise resource allocation. This is particularly important in hospitals where patient occupancy levels fluctuate daily. Many healthcare organisations now operate with a 50/50 ratio of permanent placements and temporary resources, which gives them the flexibility to accommodate the ever-shifting demands of patient care staffing, while safeguarding the delivery of quality care. By efficiently managing both permanent and agency staff, TES providers optimise recruitment efforts and ensure that the right candidates are placed in suitable roles, benefiting the healthcare organisation’s operations and patient care. TES providers uphold patient confidentiality and provide comprehensive training, ensuring staff are cognisant of privacy protocols and handle sensitive information appropriately.

Boosting patient care excellence: the vital role of specialist TES providers

In an era where healthcare value is intricately tied to workforce excellence, TES providers play a pivotal role in elevating the sector by helping medical facilities conquer their industry-specific challenges, enabling the fundamental mission of enhancing patient well-being. Ultimately, Specialist TES providers represent a crucial element in the healthcare sector’s quest for excellence, as their strategic approach to staffing not only addresses immediate needs but also upholds patient care standards, while easing administrative burdens, and enhancing workforce competencies. As such, collaboration with specialist TES providers is a progressive strategy that medical organisations should prioritise to effectively navigate the intricate challenges of the healthcare landscape today while significantly enhancing patient care outcomes.

Categories : Expert Opinion HospitalsTags :

Our Nurses, Our future: Addressing the Critical Issue of Sustainability in SA’s Healthcare Sector

On By ModernMedia
Photo by Hush Naidoo on Unsplash

With only 22 090 nurses to serve the country’s public health sector of more than 50 million citizens1, urgent intervention is required to bolster their numbers and protect the wellbeing of our nation. After all, without their tireless dedication, who will be there to guide you through the corridors back to health? writes Bada Pharasi, CEO of the Innovative Pharmaceutical Association of South Africa (IPASA)

As the global healthcare industry commemorates International Nurses Day on 12 May, it is an opportune moment to reflect on the role of nurses as the heartbeat of healthcare systems globally. Amid turmoil and triumph, nurses stand as the unsung heroes and compassionate caretakers who embody empathy, endurance and expertise. 

In South Africa, where healthcare challenges often loom large and resources are stretched thin, nurses serve as the frontline warriors, bridging the gap between suffering and healing. Yet, despite the invaluable role they play, a concerning trend looms.

Minister of Health, Joe Phaahla, recently revealed a pressing concern – the anticipation of a staggering 30% of South African nurses retiring within the next decade, and 38% retiring the decade thereafter. Compounding the issue, 5060 vacancies remain unfilled on the back of crippling budget constraints1. 

Representing over 90% of global healthcare workers2, nurses are indispensable in the healthcare ecosystem, and addressing this impending crisis of their reducing numbers demands comprehensive and multifaceted solutions that approach the challenge from every angle.

The nurse shortage crisis in South Africa stems from multiple factors. Firstly, the escalating healthcare needs of a growing population, compounded by the burden of infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, have strained the healthcare system to breaking point.

Another factor is the restricted capacity of the private sector to train nurses comprehensively due to existing regulations. Moreover, poor working conditions, particularly in the public sector, and comparatively low salaries have led to high turnover rates, prompting nurses to explore alternative career paths or seek employment opportunities abroad3. 

While there are many challenges to defusing the proverbial ticking time bomb which is the declining number of qualified nurses in South Africa, increased investment across the board is critical to strengthening their ranks. 

Despite financial investment being central in realising this, addressing the problem demands a focus on improving the working conditions of nurses. Healthcare facilities must prioritise nurses’ well-being by offering competitive salaries, manageable workloads, and opportunities for career growth. By creating a supportive work environment, South Africa can retain more nurses and deter them from seeking opportunities abroad3.

Furthermore, granting private hospitals full participation in nurse training programmes is crucial. Private sector entities, such as Netcare, have the capacity to train as many as 3,500 nurses annually. However, limited accreditation from the government hampers their potential contribution to resolving the nurse shortage. Expanding private sector involvement in nurse training could substantially increase the number of trained nurses in the country3.

In addition to these measures, collaborative efforts between the government, healthcare institutions, and nursing organisations are essential. Such partnerships can identify and implement strategies to alleviate the shortage, including targeted recruitment drives, mentorship programmes, and initiatives to improve nurses’ job satisfaction and work-life balance3.

Innovative approaches to addressing the nurse shortage in South Africa extend beyond traditional solutions. Telemedicine platforms are emerging as a promising tool, allowing nurses to deliver care remotely and reach patients in underserved areas. 

Additionally, community health worker programmes are being expanded to complement nursing services and extend healthcare access to marginalised communities. Furthermore, initiatives to empower and support nurse entrepreneurs are gaining traction, encouraging the development of innovative care models and healthcare solutions. 

These diverse approaches reflect a multifaceted response to the nurse shortage crisis, leveraging technology, community engagement, and entrepreneurship to strengthen the healthcare workforce and improve access to care for all South Africans.

References:

1. Only 22 000 nurses for 50 million South Africans [Internet]. Democratic Alliance. [cited 2024 May 2]. Available from: https://www.da.org.za/2023/06/only-22-000-nurses-for-50-million-south-africans

2. Experiences of nurses and midwives in policy development in low- and middle-income countries: Qualitative systematic review. International Journal of Nursing Studies Advances. 2023 Dec 1;5:100116.

3. [Opinion] Nurse shortage crisis in South Africa [Internet]. Centre for Risk Analysis. 2023 [cited 2024 May 2]. Available from: https://cra-sa.com/media/opinion-nurse-shortage-crisis-in-south-africa

Categories : Healthcare Politics and RegulationsTags :

Unemployed Doctors March to Union Buildings

On By ModernMedia

They are calling for the president to intervene and make sure medical professionals are employed

By Silver Sibiya for GroundUp

Scores of unemployed doctors, nurses and other health workers marched to the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Monday, calling for the Presidency to intervene in the ongoing financial problems facing the health sector.

One of their main demands is for the health budget to be increased to absorb about 800 medical professionals.

Joining the march, Mandla Matshabe, said he never imagined being unemployed when he completed his community service at Sefako Makgatho University in December last year after studying in Cuba.

“Now I’m sitting at home with a medical qualification when there is a dire need. It’s appalling to think there are medical professionals at home,” he said.

Matshabe, who lives in Hazyview in Mpumalanga, said many unemployed health workers were becoming depressed at home. He said hiring qualified doctors could help alleviate some of the burnout among doctors in the public sector.

“Doctors in communities are overburdened because we don’t have enough medical professionals, including physiotherapists and dieticians or everyone in the hospital,” he said.

University of Cape Town graduate Lerato Jaca said it was discouraging to be an unemployed doctor. “I come from KwaNzimakwe in Port Shepstone where there were literally no doctors when I was growing up.”

Jaca was raised by an unemployed single mother who relied on the money she made during Jaca’s three-year community service employment at Ermelo Hospital.

She said they now rely on her brother’s disability grant and his children’s child support grants to buy food.

Deputy President of the South African Medical Association, Dr Nkateko Minisi, said: “Other health professionals in the allied sectors, including pharmacy, are here with us to hand over a memorandum to build up the health system. But to do so, we feel that human capital must be optimised by hiring all these unemployed professionals. Not tomorrow, not next week but now!” she said.

Mnisi said more than 80% of the population depends on public health services. “Healthcare is not a privilege that should be enjoyed by some; it is a basic human right that every single person deserves.”

Communications Manager at The Presidency, Phil Mahlangu accepted the group’s memorandum.

He said that the presidency was “immensely worried as the presidency about the negative issues affecting the medical industry”. He promised the protestors a response within a week.

Republished from GroundUp under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Source: GroundUp

Categories : HospitalsTags :

South Korean Trainee Doctors Walk Out en Masse

On By ModernMedia
Photo by Hush Naidoo on Unsplash

Physicians argue that trying to combat dwindling numbers with increased medical school places ignores the real problem: gruelling hours and low pay

At several major South Korean hospitals, thousands of doctors walked out on Tuesday, causing widespread disruption in a protest at the government’s plan to increase the numbers of medical school students, The New York Times reports.

On Monday, over 6000 doctors had submitted resignations at Seoul’s five hospitals and left at 6am on Tuesday, the Health Department reported. One of the hospitals had up a sign saying that its emergency department was only handling cardiac arrest cases; the other four were on “red alert”.

Government sources state that 7813 doctors had walked off the job, Reuters reports.

South Korea may have one of the most advanced healthcare systems in the world, but it is plagued by a critical shortage of doctors. The protestors, interns and residents, say that this shortage is confined to certain areas such as emergency medicine, which are poorly compensated by the government and insurance providers. Cosmetic medicine on the other hand, is highly profitable.

One survey found that doctors in training regularly work shifts longer than 24 hours and many work for more than 80 hours a week. (In South Africa, a 2012 study found that interns regularly put in 150–200 hours of overtime per month, working out to 80–90 hours a week.)

Other factors such as an ageing population are putting more and more strain on doctors.

Early this month, the government announced a plan to increase South Korea’s medical school admissions quota from 3000 to 5000. The Ministry of Health and Welfare regulates the licences to practice medicine. Doctors were immediately critical of the plan, protesting with placards saying things like “end of health care.”

Categories : Mental HealthTags :

New Tool Predicts Burnout Risk

On By ModernMedia
Photo by Mulyadi on Unsplash

It is not uncommon for people to “hit the wall” at work and experience burnout for short or long periods of time.

“We have found that approximately 13 per cent of Norwegian employees are at high risk of burnout,” says Leon De Beer, Associate Professor of Work and Organizational Psychology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) Department of Psychology.

De Beer has contributed to a new study on burnout published in the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology with colleagues from the Healthy Workplaces research group.

They are working on a new tool that can identify people at risk of burnout. 

Signs that you might be at risk of burnout

If you are facing demands and stress at work that seem to be intractable, and you have frequently experienced the following symptoms in recent weeks, it might be a sign that you are on the verge of burning out:

  1. You feel mentally exhausted at work.
  2. You struggle to feel enthusiastic about your job.
  3. You have trouble concentrating when working.
  4. You sometimes overreact at work without meaning to.

Early intervention is key

It is important to identify the early signs of burnout in order to mitigate the harmful effects. The warning signs are often present before things have gone too far, as long as we manage to identify them.

“Not addressing the risk of employee burnout in time can have long-term consequences,” says De Beer.

The physical and psychological effects of burnout include cardiovascular disease, pain related to musculoskeletal injuries, sleeping problems, and depression. Organisations can also lose talented employees and experience an increase in sickness absence and lost productivity.

A new tool may become standard

De Beer’s research group has trialled a new measurement tool to identify the early warning signs of burnout. In the past, it has not always been that easy.

“Previously, we have not had a detailed enough measurement tool for use in both the field of practice and research that identifies workers who are at risk of burnout,” says De Beer.

There is currently no international standard for assessing burnout.

The new tool is called the Burnout Assessment Tool, or BAT among researchers who have a penchant for amusing abbreviations. The BAT consortium, of which the researchers are a part, is now testing the instrument in more than 30 countries.

https://burnoutassessmenttool.be/start_eng/

Start ENG

“Our studies show that BAT is a good tool for identifying the risk of burnout,” says De Beer.

Burnout is the body’s response to stress

BAT measures four main groups of risk factors: exhaustion, mental distancing, cognitive impairment and emotional impairment.

Burnout is not really an illness, but a feeling of being mentally or physically exhausted — the body’s response to a lasting, demanding situation.

Burnout is normally defined as a work-related syndrome, but there is evidence that work-life balance also plays a role. Stress and burnout don’t necessarily stop when you go home at the end of the day, as these effects often extend into other areas of life and vice versa.

Some may experience years of burnout

For some people, burnout can be stopped in its tracks and solutions found to improve their situation. For others, however, burnout can last for years if the problem isn’t addressed.

“We can deal with burnout through individual treatment, but it is of little use if people return to a workplace where the demands are too high and there are few resources. It is then highly likely that the employee will become ill again. Therefore, it is important to create good working conditions and structures that safeguard the health of employees,” says Professor Marit Christensen at NTNU’s Department of Psychology.

Culturally independent

The researchers studied a representative sample of 500 Norwegian workers. Norway is roughly on par with the EU average when it comes to mental health, but somewhat better when it comes to work-related matters.

A lower percentage of the Norwegian population struggles with exhaustion in connection with work. Somewhat fewer people than the EU average report health hazards at work, and we experience a better work-life balance.

“Using a recognised method, we found that around 13 per cent of the 500 surveyed workers were at high risk of burnout,” says Professor Christensen.

The tool can help identify who requires the most urgent follow up so that the risk of burnout can be reduced.

We do not yet know whether the prevalence of burnout in Norway is high in an international context. The Norwegian study is among several BAT studies that are currently taking place, so these answers will be available at a later date.

The tool is intended to be culturally independent, and it certainly works well in Norway. The researchers also found that the tool works regardless of gender.

“For entertainment and educational purposes, interested parties can use our online tool to test if they are at risk of burnout,” says Professor Christensen.

“Please note that the tool only gives an indication of risk and does not provide any type of formal diagnosis or medical advice. If you are concerned about your levels of work-related stress, we encourage you to visit a health care provider to discuss the matter,” says Professor Christensen.

Source: Norwegian University of Science and Technology

Categories : Healthcare Politics and RegulationsTags :

Worst of Hiring Freeze Over, Western Cape Health Department Assures Health Workers

On By ModernMedia

By Daniel Steyn for GroundUp

Dr Keith Cloete, head of the Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness, has told health workers in the province that the “severe and drastic measures” taken to “constrain the filling of posts” in the past three months has brought the department back within budget.

Cloete was speaking in a video update circulated to the department’s employees on Thursday. Health workers in the province have raised concerns over a “near-complete” freezing of vacant posts to curb budget cuts imposed by National Treasury.

Initial cuts to provincial budgets and conditional grants that fund hospitals were made at the start of 2023/24 and were further exacerbated by in-year cuts.

Provincial governments also had to absorb within their existing budgets a mandatory public sector wage increase. National Treasury recommended in November that provincial departments freeze hiring.

Since November, posts in the Western Cape could only be filled on approval by head office, but Cloete said in his video that those decisions will now be “decentralised” again.

Line managers may again fill vacant posts on condition that they “apply their minds” and work within “a tight framework”, said Cloete. He added that he was mindful of the impact the hiring constraints have had on services.

In January, GroundUp reported on significant staff shortages at Groote Schuur Hospital and Red Cross War Memorial Hospital. Senior hospital managers in the province complained that there had been a lack of communication from the department’s management on how long budget cuts would last and what would be done to mitigate their impact.

On 4 February, more than 1200 doctors wrote an open letter to Western Cape Premier Alan Winde, Western Cape Finance Minister Mireille Wenger and national Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, calling for an end to “catastrophic budget cuts”.

The health workers warned that the cuts will cause surgical operations to be cancelled or postponed; patients in need of specialist medical care to wait longer; cancer treatment to be delayed and cancers diagnosed at later stages with less chance of successful treatment; and gains in neonatal, infant and paediatric care would be “reversed”, among many other issues.

In Thursday’s video update, Cloete said that the budget for the 2024/25 financial year has not yet been finalised. The final budget allocation will be tabled in the provincial legislature in early March.

Budget cuts are expected to continue into the foreseeable future. Over the next three years, the Western Cape government faces cuts amounting to R6.7-billion. According to premier Alan Winde, 37% of the province’s budget goes to healthcare.

Cloete announced that a meeting will be held with managers, clinicians and support staff “to have a discussion of how do we redesign our healthcare services across the entire system in the Western Cape” on 21 February.

“I understand anxieties that everyone will experience in this specific area. I call on everyone to please attempt to get a slightly bigger view …. And for us to do this together. Together, we can actually navigate this successfully.”

Republished from GroundUp under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Source: GroundUp

Categories : Healthcare Politics and RegulationsTags :

Call to Stop ‘Catastrophic’ Health Care Budget Cuts

On By ModernMedia

By Daniel Steyn for GroundUp

More than 1,200 doctors, nurses and other health workers in the Western Cape have signed an open letter to Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, Premier Alan Winde and Finance MEC Mireille Wenger, calling for an end to “catastrophic” budget cuts in the provincial department.

The National Treasury cut health budgets at the start of the 2023/24 financial year and introduced further cuts halfway through the year, recommending a hiring freeze on new posts. Provincial departments were also told to absorb the cost of an unfunded public sector wage increase.

On Monday, Deputy Minister of the National Department of Health Sibongiseni Dhlomo told protesting unemployed doctors in Pietermaritzburg that the department will be taking the issue of budget cuts to Parliament this week and ask that healthcare be exempted.

In January, GroundUp also reported how two of the Western Cape’s biggest hospitals, Groote Schuur and Red Cross Children’s Hospital, are facing significant staff shortages.

According to the open letter sent by Western Cape health workers, the provincial health system has been “destabilised by indiscriminate freezing of virtually all clinical and non-clinical posts and a freeze on nursing overtime and agency budgets”.

“A reduction in posts mean that today, and tomorrow into the foreseeable future, there are fewer nurses, doctors, general assistants, clerks, physiotherapists, radiographers, porters, occupational therapists, dentists and specialists to deliver desperately needed healthcare to the population.”

The hiring freeze has also meant that critical medical posts remain vacant due to resignations or doctors completing their training.

The health workers wrote that the cuts will cause a reduction of surgical theatre lists, causing a postponement or cancellation of operations; patients in need of specialist medical care to wait longer due to fewer available hospital beds; oncology (cancer treatment) services to be delayed, meaning that cancers are diagnosed at later stages with less chance of successful treatment; and gains in neonatal, infant and paediatric care to be “reversed”, among many other issues.

Currently employed health workers will be required to work harder and longer to fill the gaps, which may lead to “sleep deprivation, burnout and fatigue-induced errors”, according to the letter.

Premier Alan Winde and MEC Wenger responded to the open letter in a joint statement on 7 February.

In the statement, Wenger and Winde agreed that the “nationally imposed” budget cuts are “devastating” and that they go beyond health services and “have hit education and social development services”.

“This is exactly what the Western Cape Government warned of and which it is now fighting to stop and reverse,” the statement read.

Over the next three years, the Western Cape Government faces cuts amounting to R6.7-billion. According to Winde and Wenger, these cuts are more than the total combined budgets of the provincial departments of community safety, economic development, and cultural affairs and sport.

In November, the provincial government declared an intergovernmental dispute (IGD) with the national government over the cuts. Mediation in this matter remains ongoing.

Asked to respond to the open letter, the National Treasury told GroundUp that the budget for 2024/25, which will be tabled on 21 February, will provide some guidance.

Republished from GroundUp under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Source: GroundUp

Categories : Healthcare Politics and RegulationsTags :

Unemployed Doctors March to Department of Health

On By ModernMedia

They demand permanent jobs and no budget cuts to healthcare

Doctors marched to the Department of Health offices in Pietermaritzburg on Monday to demand jobs. Photo: Joseph Bracken.

Over 80 unemployed doctors marched from UNISA campus on Longmarket Road to the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health’s offices in Langalibele Street, Pietermaritzburg, on Monday.

They went to hand over their CVs and a memorandum demanding that the healthcare budget be increased to accommodate over 700 qualifying medical practitioners. The department was given 14 days to respond.

Eighty-four unemployed doctors also signed a register handed to the department.

The doctors were met by Deputy Health Minister Sibongiseni Dhlomo who said health minister Joe Phaahla had another engagement. Dhlomo said the department was working to address the issue of unemployed doctors, and that the minister would raise it this week in Parliament and ask that healthcare be exempt from budget cuts.

Dr Siya Shozi, part of a “small committee” of unemployed doctors with no political affiliation mandated to liaise with the department, said the march was coordinated through a WhatsApp group. Shozi was happy with the turnout but said it did not represent the large number of unemployed doctors in KZN and its rural areas.

Busiziwe Mancotywa, a grade one medical officer who has been unemployed since completing her training at the end of last year, said, “You apply for some positions where you meet the minimum requirements but for whatever reason you are never contacted”.

Mancotywa was joined by her brother, Nqaba, who is finishing his internship at Greys Hospital. He said if action is not taken now, he won’t find a job in the future.

Nomfundo Mbanjwa, also a grade one medical officer, complained about the cost of applying for jobs, including printing applications and transport to interviews. Mbanjwa says she had to sell her car to cover these costs.

Representatives from the South African Medical Association Trade Union (SAMATU) and the Public Servants Association of South Africa (PSA) joined the march and pledged support for the doctors.

Republished from GroundUp under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Source: GroundUp

Categories : Healthcare Politics and Regulations HospitalsTags :

Officials Raise Alarm over Hiring Freeze at Western Cape’s Largest Hospitals

On By ModernMedia

By Daniel Steyn for GroundUp

Health workers at Groote Schuur Hospital and Red Cross Children’s Hospital in Cape Town are starting to feel the effects of an ongoing freeze on the hiring of critical medical staff.

According to senior officials at these hospitals, speaking to GroundUp anonymously, the situation has reached a point where managers are struggling to fill shift rosters. An impact on patient care and waiting times is inevitable, the officials say.

A senior hospital manager at Groote Schuur told GroundUp that almost half of medical officer (doctor) posts in the medicine department are vacant, in addition to hundreds of other nursing and operational posts. 

Another senior official at Red Cross Children’s Hospital told GroundUp that “critical medical posts” are being left vacant, including medical officer, registrar (doctors in training for a speciality), and specialist posts.

Groote Schuur Hospital is one of the largest government hospitals in the Western Cape and Red Cross Children’s Hospital is the largest children’s hospital in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Daily Maverick reported in November that the budget shortfall for these two hospitals amounts to more than R300-million for 2023/2024.

In addition to hiring freezes at Groote Schuur and Red Cross, the Western Cape Department of Health decided to de-escalate services at the hospitals for a period of four weeks over December and January. Hospital managers were also told to reduce spending on consumables by 50%, according to the Daily Maverick.

At the start of 2023, large cuts were made to the conditional grants that fund these hospitals. And then in the middle of the year, National Treasury announced significant austerity measures including a R21-billion reduction in national government spending for 2023/24.

In August last year, a letter by National Treasury to provincial governments recommended several “cost containment” measures for the 2023/24 financial year and suggested a freeze on hiring of new employees.

It appears that each province’s health department is dealing with the “cost containment” measures in different ways. In the Eastern Cape, for example, hiring freezes have been implemented but not for clinical staff, Sizwe Kupelo, spokesperson for that province’s health department, told GroundUp.

In the Western Cape, as of May 2022, the vacancy rate of medical posts was 5%, compared to 14% in the Eastern Cape, 20% in Gauteng and 28% in KwaZulu-Natal. Health experts are concerned that budget cuts and hiring freezes will have a devastating impact on these provinces.

Hospital officials at Groote Schuur and Red Cross told GroundUp that there has been a lack of clarity from the provincial department on how long hiring freezes will last and whether there will be a permanent reduction in medical posts.

Senior officials fear that the hiring freeze is undoing decades of investment by the government in the capacity of state hospitals. Newly graduated doctors looking to specialise need to take up a registrar post in a state facility, but with registrar posts frozen in the Western Cape, this is almost impossible for them to do.

Hospital managers told GroundUp that some medical officers have resigned from Western Cape hospitals to take up registrar posts in other provinces or even other countries.

Officials are also concerned that if hiring freezes are implemented in primary and secondary care facilities, referrals to hospitals will increase, putting further pressure on an already overburdened tertiary health system.

Dwayne Evans, spokesperson for the Western Cape Department of Health, told GroundUp that the department is unable to respond to specific questions on budget shortfalls or the number of posts frozen, as the 2024/25 budgets are being finalised.

Evans told GroundUp that as part of the hiring freeze, the filling of vacant posts now needs to be authorised by the provincial department to attain “provincial consensus”. 820 vacant nursing posts and 441 doctor positions have been “earmarked to be filled soon”, Evans said.

“We are doing everything we can to reduce the impact on our patients. No patients will be refused emergency and basic medical care and treatment,” he said.

The National Department of Health did not respond to GroundUp’s questions despite several follow-up attempts. National Treasury said that guidance will be given during the upcoming budget speech by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana.

Republished from GroundUp under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Source: GroundUp