The Public Protector has given the Eastern Cape provincial health 60 days to fill vacant positions at Livingstone and Uitenhage hospitals in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro.
Certain time-frames have been given to the department to deal with infrastructure challenges at Mthatha Academic and Nessie Knight Hospitals.
This follows an investigation conducted by the PP office, after media reports on the state and challenges facing the health sector in the province.
Eastern Cape Department of Health Spokesperson Sizwe Kupelo says there are strategies in place to handle the situation.
“With regards to the HR issue around the province, we’ve got a strategy that we are putting in place with the vacancies that were the results of COVID-19 which has claimed the lives of a number of health professionals in our province. Coupled with that we are faced with the challenge of medical legal claims which are a subject of investigations by the SIU and the hawks because we believe that the department is being targeted by unscrupulous lawyers.”
Eastern Cape Health to beef up Livingstone Hospital staff
Last month, the Eastern Cape Health Department announced plans of employing over 80 healthcare workers to increase staff levels at the Livingstone Hospital in Gqeberha. Workers’ unions had held several protests, raising concerns around staff shortages in the province.
The department says it will have a transparent recruiting process and the posts include professional nurses, enrolment nurses, and assistant nurses. This comes as COVID-19 cases are increasing in the province.
The vacancies have not yet been advertised, but the aim is for healthcare workers to report for duty on the first of July.
