Frustrated Khayelitsha residents say poor service at their local hospital is driving them to seek help elsewhere.
According to a Weekend Argus report, the hospital opened its doors to the public a little over six years ago and caters to residents of Khayelitsha, Mfuleni and surrounding areas. Reports of patients having to wait overnight to see a doctor, sleeping on chairs due to shortages of beds, and staff shortages form part of a slew of challenges at the facility.
The report says known as one of the busiest trauma units in the province, the hospital, which was built to alleviate pressure on other facilities, now sees residents going elsewhere because they no longer trust that they will receive care when they need it. Khanyiso Gudla said she had on two occasions left the hospital with family members, not having received medical care. “I went to the hospital last week with my sick father, he is 78-years-old and has heart problems and had been having chest pains all day. We went to the emergency room and we waited for over five hours without being seen by a doctor. I eventually had to leave him there at around midnight because my children were alone at night,” she said. ….more