Ideal Clinics help boost KwaZulu-Natal’s healthcare standards

A report on Ideal Clinics presented to cabinet by KwaZulu-Natal Health MEC Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo and head of department Dr Sifiso Mtshali had “displayed the significant progress made by the department to improve the standard of health care in the province”.

The report showed that of the 10 best performing clinics (which scored more than 80%)‚ six were in KwaZulu-Natal: Wembezi Clinic‚ Cornfield Clinic‚ AE Haviland Memorial Clinic‚ Phatheni Clinic‚ Richmond Clinic and Efaye Clinic.

None of the clinics in the province were reported among the lowest performing clinics (below 20%).

Dr Dhlomo said: “The department is aware that the success of National Health Insurance lies in acceleration realisation of the concept of Ideal Clinics.

“The concept of Ideal Clinics is there to reinforce a culture whereby patients are taken care of and complaints are dealt with appropriately and speedily in order to ensure customer satisfaction.

“We know that for our people to have confidence in our institutions‚ for them to say‚ ‘This is our clinic’ and not ‘a government facility’ depends largely on us as management.

“We will continue working hard and not rest until our institutions give the best quality of health care at all times‚ which will ensure that diseases are nipped in the bud in order to keep the citizens of the province healthy.

“The concept of an Ideal Clinic is therefore an instrumental tool to the success of broader national priorities‚ which involve effectively address weaknesses and ensure sustained improvements in quality of health services delivered at public sector primary health care facilities.”

The MEC said‚ “It is important when dealing with matters of Health in KwaZulu-Natal to note that the department services more than nine million healthcare users. More than 90% of the population of KwaZulu-Natal rely on public health service and the department continues to improve the care of our healthcare users at these institutions.

“Improvements in the quality and standard of health care will be further enhanced by the re-engineering of health towards primary health care‚ which will ensure that there is a focus on disease prevention and the promotion of healthy lifestyles‚ as opposed to a hospital-centric approach to health care.”

According to a statement by the office of the KwaZulu-Natal MEC for health an Ideal Clinic must:

Be a client-centred clinic; open in time and not close until the last patient has been assisted‚ even if this is beyond the normal closing hours;

Be very clean‚ promote hygiene and take all precautionary measures to prevent the spread of diseases;

Work with the community it serves; provide community-based health promotion and disease prevention programmes in collaboration with the community;

Have reasonable waiting times and ensure that community members do not have to sacrifice their entire working day to seek health care;

Apply all the relevant resources at its disposal to provide a quality primary health care service; and

Ensure the provision of quality health services to the community through good infrastructure‚ adequate staff‚ adequate medicine and supplies‚ adequate bulk supplies‚ good administrative processes‚ optimally use its referral network for the benefit of its clients.

RDM News Wire.