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On International Nurses Day the DA in the Eastern Cape celebrates and salutes the sacrifices made, and hard work and dedication of our nurses, despite the odds that are stacked against them. They are true heroes.

Nurses in the Eastern Cape are physically exhausted and emotionally defeated, but remain dedicated to providing the best possible care for their patients.

At the Frontier Hospital in eKomani a professional nurse works in a 36-bed ward. She is the only nurse on duty and cannot even take the time to have lunch or a comfort break.

I recently conducted an oversight inspection at the Frontier Hospital where a professional nurse told me that she feels heartbroken, because the patients in her ward are left to die alone without anyone to even hold their hands while they pass on.

The Eastern Cape Department of Health has committed to filling more vacant nursing posts across the province. However, this commitment is not tangible on the ground and the untenable working conditions of our nurses continue unabated.

The department is financially constrained because of medico-legal claims, which have impacted on its budgets and leaves it with little room to manoeuvre. If the department fills more posts, it has less money available for goods and services.

The DA has called on the department to consider establishing a separate fund to deal with risks associated with medico-legal claims. Such a fund is catered for in the Public Finance Management Act and there are National Treasury regulations which give guidelines for its establishment and use.

Furthermore, the department’s accruals and payables in the previous financial year totalled a staggering R4.6 billion. I will write to National and Provincial Treasury to find mechanisms to assist the department in dealing with accruals and payables, so that the department can once again function without having to delve into its operational budgets just to make ends meet.

Until vacant posts are filled, and the department gets a firm handle on accruals and payables, universal health care in this province will remain a pipe dream and our nurses will continue to suffer.

Issued by Jane Cowley MPL - DA EC Shadow MEC for Health