Nehawu strike blamed for Gogo's death
and |Published
Cape Town - The family of Kathrine Nkosi believe she is one of the victims of the Nehawu strike.
Her family said had it not been for the strike, Nkosi, 69, would have received medical care at Thelle Mogoerane Regional Hospital and would have been alive.
Granddaughter Simphiwe Mchunu said her grandmother got sick in the past few weeks.
She was first taken to Bertha Gxowa Hospital in Germiston but transferred to Thelle Mogoerane Hospital. Tests were run and she was told she had kidney stones.
On March 2, a surgery to insert pipes to clear out the infection was performed.
Last Monday, when Mchunu went to visit, she found that her grandmother’s health had improved.
“On Tuesday, I found her in a bad state; she told me she was not well and had not taken medication because the doctors were on strike. Other patients told me that she did not eat; they were given two slices of brown bread and juice,” said Mchunu.
Another patient advised her to arrive early the next day so that she could feed and bathe her grandmother.
“When I arrived, I found the nurses and doctors striking. I found granny in a bad state, weak and dehydrated.
“The ward was very dirty; I cleaned it. I managed to assist another patient who is blind. As I was about to leave, nurses came running and closed the doors. They told me that they were fearing that other nurses may assault them.
“I was told to wait for the doctor to discharge her. Indeed, the doctor saw all his patients, and he gave them prescriptions.
“I was shocked when I was told that they were not removing the pipes; a nurse demonstrated how to clean them.
A nurse told me she would change the bags attached to her, but that did not happen. She did not get medication for two days,” said Mchunu.
They took her grandmother to Bertha Gxowa again, but a doctor told them that he would not touch her because they had transferred her to another hospital because they didn’t deal with the procedure she required.
“I begged the doctor to at least check her; she was too weak and not able to speak anymore. The only thing she was doing was watching us. The doctor told us to leave with her, citing that there was nothing they could do,” she said.
Mchunu said on Thursday they managed to feed her grandmother and give her medication.
“I noticed that she was sleepy, and I told her that I wanted to change her pipes. I got out of the room, and when I returned, she had passed on,” said Mchunu.
“My grandmother was full of jokes and loved herself and her family,” said Mchunu.
“Besides my grandmother, a lot of people I know have lost their loved ones,” she said.
Nkosi leaves behind her seven children, 17 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Health Minister Joe Phaahla said they were not going to give out the number of people who died, citing processes for clinically certifying patients and that an investigation must ensue.
“While families will want to find closure, it is safer at this point not to necessarily go in that direction until there is a clinical report,” said Gauteng Health spokesperson Motaletale Modiba.
During a media briefing on Sunday, Nehawu general secretary Zola Saphetha said the loss of lives was unfortunate.
Saphetha said they must be given space to exercise their rights to await the conclusion of the investigation by the state; once that is done, he said, they can respond as a union.
The Nehawu protest in Cape Town continued on Tuesday with members picketing outside the Cape Town Home Affairs office, resulting in the closure of the facility.
The Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness said that there had been no reports of essential services workers who had not reported to work.
Nehawu provincial secretary Baxolise Mali said members were also present to shut down offices of the Department of Forestry and Fisheries, the Department of Environmental Affairs in Strand Street, and the Department of Labour Regional and Provincial.
“We have obliged with the court order and essential services members are back at work. However, non essential workers will continue.
“All we are asking for is a decent living wage with decent living conditions. The employer must stop being arrogant,” he said.
Nehawu national spokesperson, Lwazi Nkolonzi, said that the protests would continue.
“We received the judgment which said the public strike was not interdicted, except for essential services workers. The court said members who are in the essential service are interdicted pending the finalisation of the minimum service level agreement.
“We did communicate to our members who needed to be back at work as per the order, and indeed all those members heeded the call.
“We have respected the Labour Appeal Court and our legal team will advise in due time on a way forward, but in the meantime the strike continues because not everyone was interdicted,” he said.
Cape Times