Gauteng health turn-around on track: MEC

The turnaround and stabilisation of Gauteng’s departments of health and social development is underway, the provincial government said on Monday.

Health and social development MEC Ntombi Mekgwe said the auditing company KPMG would step in this week to help the department with the turnaround.

At the top of the list would be strategy sessions with managers of all hospitals.

"There is going to be a major shake-up in the manner that we do business. We are going to put in place new systems and processes to ensure that there is discipline and integrity in the manner that we do business," said Mekgwe.

She wants hospital overtime managed, private work curbed, and operational efficiencies and the relationship with suppliers improved.

"As part of ensuring discipline and managing overtime, we are in the process of disciplining nine doctors who claimed excessive overtime from the department," she said.

Investigations had shown that these doctors claimed overtime in hospitals where they were not employed.

On the issue of suppliers, Mekgwe said the department was working to settle all outstanding payments due to service providers.

"All debts owed from previous years to March 2011 will be cleared by the end of next month and all other debts will be cleared by June this year," Mekgwe said.