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Gauteng hospitals should have 3340 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) nurses, but only 659 ICU nurses are working, and no new ICU nurses have been trained since 2019.

This shocking information is revealed by Gauteng Health MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko in a written reply to my questions in the Gauteng Legislature.

According to Nkomo-Ralehoko, there should be 3340 ICU nurses based on the number of ICU and high care beds and the nurse:patient ratio of 1:1 for ICU and 1:2 for the High Care Unit.

She says there are 317 specialised nurses posts that are vacant because of the shortage of ICU nurses.

But training of ICU nurses was discontinued in 2020 because “the old programme of a post basic has been discontinued as the new programmes that are aligned with Higher Education Qualification Sub Framework are to be implemented.”

Approval for the training of Critical
Care Nurses is awaited from the Council for Higher Education, and the programme needs to be registered with the SA Qualifications Authority. But only 85 critical care students will be trained annually in the enrolment plan approved by the SA Nursing Council (SANC).

It is unbelievable that nurse training is halted by red tape and incompetence. Many patients die because they don’t get proper care in understaffed ICUs.

And the waiting lists for operations get longer because ICU care is required after major surgery.

Meanwhile, the private health sector can train many more nurses but they are limited by the SANC.

The DA is pushing in parliament for the lifting of irrational restrictions on nurse training, and the expedited approval of training programmes.

Rapid expansion of nurse training in both private and public sectors is needed to counter the massive shortage of specialised nurses.

Issued by Jack Bloom MPL - DA Gauteng Shadow Health MEC