The Gauteng Health Department (GHD) has denied that Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital (Baragwanath) has run out of food – though admitted a ‘short supply’ of bread.
On Thursday, the Democratic Alliance (DA) raised concerns that the hospital had run out of food because of contract mismanagement and non-payment of suppliers.
DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Health Jack Bloom said Baragwanath had had no bread for the past two weeks and that some doctors and nurses had taken in food to feed starving patients.
A doctor who spoke to News24 on condition of anonymity said that the lack of food was a humanitarian crisis.
However, the GHD took to Twitter to assure people that the hospital had enough food for patients.
‘We wish to assure families of patients and the public that Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital has not run out of food. All other types of food are served, there was only a short supply of bread which has thus far been resolved and the bread supply capacity improved.’
On Thursday, staff at Baragwanath picketed outside the hospital to express their anger at the decision by the GHD to let go of about 800 nurses and doctors in temporary posts created to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic two years ago. The GHD said the cuts were due to budget constraints.
Staff said the decision would have an impact on the hospital’s capacity to deal with the high volumes of patients.
Some of those 800 posts will not be renewed for this coming financial year.
The department’s Kwara Kekana said: ‘The allocated amount will not be sufficient to cater for the total cost of reappointment of all categories of employment on contract for the financial year of 2022/2023.’
Employees said the budget allocated to Baragwanath, the third largest hospital in the world, was far less than that of other hospitals, such as the George Mukhari or Charlotte Maxeke hospitals.
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