Another fire: Tembisa Hospital turns patients away

Phaahla says team is doing all it can to ensure patients are safe. Evans Sekhaolo walks back home after being turned away from the Tembisa Hospital after a second fire erupted at the facility yesterday morning, disrupting services.

A mother seeking urgent care for her four-month-old daughter with a heart condition was among dozens of patients turned away from Tembisa Hospital on Wednesday morning, after a second fire in four days forced the partial closure of the facility.

The woman, who had strapped her baby to her chest, braved the cold and rain to arrive at the hospital by 6am for a scheduled echocardiogram – a critical heart scan – for her child who was born prematurely. Instead, she found chaos outside the hospital gates as emergency services battled the blaze.

“When I arrived, there was commotion, and we were told to stand outside the gate as the fire was being extinguished. My heart is really sore because the doctors couldn’t check my child, but I will just continue to look after her well,” she said.

When I arrived, there was commotion, and we were told to stand outside the gate as the fire was being extinguished. My heart is really sore because the doctors couldn’t check my child

Mother of sick child

Dr Angelique Coetzee of the SA Medical Association said an echocardiogram is done to see if one of the four valves of the heart is leaking and if the blood is flowing properly. “If the patient is stable, then it is not urgent; it can be done after two weeks or so. But if the child is sick, it needs to be done within 72 hours because you want to see what is happening in that heart. For premature babies, you always have to look for cardiovascular problems, especially the valves that are not closing, because it is common in them,” she said.

The fire broke out early on Wednesday near the accident and emergency unit, which had already suffered severe damage from Saturday night’s fire. The incident has severely disrupted services, leaving outpatients and chronic patients, who had arrived early for their appointments, without essential medical care.

A woman reliant on arthritis medication was instructed to return after two weeks. “I don’t know what I’m going to do. I’ll have to survive on painkillers,” she said.

Others, like Evans Sekhaolo, who arrived on crutches for a check-up after a car accident, were told they’d not be helped, and should seek treatment elsewhere. “I’m in pain and I needed my medication, but I was told to go to another chemist. They can only help me in two weeks,” he said.

The two fires at Tembisa Hospital have had a severe affect on patient services, with key hospital departments including the pharmacy eye clinic and outpatient department closed. Urgent procedures like CAT scans are being redirected to other hospitals.

The nearby Edenvale Hospital is experiencing a patient overflow, with staff struggling to cope as patients are diverted from Tembisa. “We usually have stretchers outside and inside, but since Saturday, all the stretchers and wheelchairs have been occupied,” said an Edenvale Hospital employee.

Another staffer said: “We have been quite busy, and sometimes when patients arrive here, they don’t find any beds , and patients would be sitting on wheelchairs and stretchers. We are quite overwhelmed.”

The cause of the two fires remain under investigation, with Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi saying on Tuesday he had asked the State Security Agency to investigate whether the fire was the result of arson.

Deputy health minister Joe Phaahla visited the hospital yesterday, but provided little detail on damage or plans for recovery. He said Wednesday’s fire, which started in the filing room, had caused “severe damage” and that forensics specialists were still working on site. “We need to establish what happened, and are leaving this to the experts,” he said

However, Phaahla said the latest blaze had no direct link to Saturday’s fire. “This is a serious enough matter that the national department needed to come and see for ourselves, and get a briefing in terms of what could have led to this, and how the hospital is coping.

“In terms of services, the hospital management and the province have made a provision to make sure services still continue, including access to medication. The team, led by the chief pharmacist, have been working to retrieve medication and make sure that in the wards, even those who were being discharged can get their medication.

“We are doing everything possible to ensure that patients are safe and those who are in the wards are safe, and there is no threat at this stage. This hospital is not in a position to take emergencies. Tambo Memorial and Edenvale have taken responsibility for emergencies.”

Responding to questions about patients being turned away, Gauteng health department spokesperson Motalatale Modiba said that would have been at the time the hospital was still assessing where to send patients in light of the fire. He then asked for the contact details of those who were asked to return next week and in two weeks’ time.

“Services are continuing inside [the hospital] and we have reorganised things,” he said. “We are also utilising other facilities. The eye clinic and pharmacy are not affected but because of the smoke we cannot take people inside. We needed to clear the smoke.”