This picture of babies in the hospital’s neonatal unit being kept in cardboard boxes were shared on social media, prompting an investigation.
- A report released by the North West health MEC has revealed allegations of serious misconduct against Mahikeng Provincial Hospital management.
- Five hospital management members will be temporarily relocated to nearby facilities to allow the investigation to continue unhindered.
- MEC Madoda Sambatha said he had reviewed his decision about the precautionary suspension of the two officials suspended last week.
A preliminary North West health department investigation into babies being placed inside cardboard boxes at Mahikeng Provincial Hospital revealed allegations of serious misconduct against hospital management.
This is according to North West Health MEC Madoda Sambatha.
On Thursday, Sambatha released the preliminary investigation report that was part of a multi-phased approach adopted by the department to resolve the challenges experienced at the hospital.
Last Friday, the department announced it had launched an investigation into babies being placed in cardboard boxes in the hospital’s neonatal section.
This came after a Facebook post showed babies wrapped in purple hospital blankets, with nasogastric tubes, and placed in brown boxes.
READ | Mahikeng hospital gets 18 incubators after newborns found to have been placed in cardboard boxes
Last Friday, the North West health department investigated the incident.
According to the provincial department, a report has called for five hospital management members to be temporarily relocated to nearby facilities to allow the investigation to continue unhindered.
Sambatha said:
I have also reviewed my decision about the precautionary suspension of the two officials following the report’s release. I have constantly said that the precautionary suspension was never punitive but to give space to ascertain whether their presence would not interfere with the investigation.
He said the department had channelled skills and resources to augment the operational capacity at the hospital for effective service delivery.
“The hospital has consistently been experiencing a very high bed utilisation rate, particularly in neonatal, orthopaedic and 72-hour psychiatric units. We had to sit down as a department with the hospital management to come up with measures to alleviate the situation to optimise efficiencies at the facility,” Sambatha said.
He said a space audit was conducted as part of the intervention, and the postnatal unit would be moved to gynaecology to allow that space to be converted into a neonatal ward to accommodate 79 incubators and cribs.
“The clinical space will be increased with additional beds; the orthopaedic beds will be increased from 46 to 66 with a separate female ward. An additional 15 beds in the Bophelong Psychiatric Hospital will be utilised for female patients on 72-hour observation,” he said.
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