In-depth: Ongoing security concerns at Gauteng hospitals amid reports of cable theft
This is despite millions being paid for security at these health facilities. Spotlight previously reported on security contracts for health facilities in Gauteng here.
Already bogged down by loadshedding, operations at various health facilities in Gauteng and a few other provinces have also been disrupted due to cable theft, creating another layer of risk for patients and healthcare workers.A specialist gastroenterologist at CMJAH, Professor Adam Mahomed tells Spotlight there have been several theft incidents at the hospital in recent months. This include people stealing cables and copper piping from the floors, he says.
“The problem with these thefts is that an emergency plan must be made for the work to continue and that itself takes a lot of money, paperwork, and time delays,” he says. Mahomed suggests that if something is stolen while the hospital has a security contract with a security company, that company should pay for the losses. “Money must come off your payment every month. So if you have R5 million stolen from the hospital, you’ll get R5 million less on your contract.”Motaletale Modiba, Gauteng Health spokesperson, says the provincial health department has lost over R4.
This week on 28 March during a question and answer session in the Gauteng Legislature, DA MPP and spokesperson for health in the province, Jack Bloom asked Gauteng Health MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko about the security contracts and costs. “I do appreciate [this] because it’s a lot of money that is involved with those tenders.So we need to follow all the proper processes.”“And we will ensure that probity auditors make sure they scrutinise each and every contract before we can award it. So, I agree with you. We can’t have month-to-month contracts for so many years. That’s irregular and it’s not making us look good.
He says that a control room where pipes were cut off in December is a locked place that not even the hospital staff have access to. It is only the maintenance people who have access, he says. “The Gauteng Department of Health has undertaken a review of security measures across all facilities with the view to strengthen the state of security, which include the deployment of integrated measures such as the use of technology,” Madisha says.
“The cable theft at Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital took place during the fire incident,” according to him. Lebo Nare, Director of Mafoko Security Patrols, also confirmed to Spotlight that there was an incident of theft at CMJAH in January. “The theft was done by an individual who had authorised access to certain areas in the hospital. It was discovered that the suspect was in the employ of a contractor doing some work for the hospital who had intricate knowledge of locating critical infrastructure and its value,” he says.
Spotlight’s attempts to get further clarification from the Gauteng Department of Health and an explanation for the contradictory information about these thefts was unsuccessful. Meanwhile, the South African Medical Association has also expressed concern over the incidents of theft.
“SAMA is gravely concerned that people’s lives are at stake when cable theft disrupts oxygen supply, such as at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in 2022,” he says.
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