Probe of Baragwanath 'problems'

At least 80 elective surgeries are rescheduled every week at South Africa's largest hospital because of power failures and a shortage of clean linen.

Today police will begin an investigation at Soweto's Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital into what provincial authorities have described as malicious intent to disrupt the hospital.

Senior doctors met hospital CEO Johanna More last week to discuss the worsening problems of power cuts and malfunctioning generators. More reported what she believes is arson to Gauteng health MEC Ntombi Mekgwe.

Gauteng premier Nomvula Mokonyane called for a police investigation of the matter and will visit the hospital tomorrow.

Mekgwe's spokesman, Simon Zwane, said that if there was "just one incident we may have thought it was a mishap" but the problems at the hospital last week were in different departments.

"One day it was the generator in the maternity ward that had been tampered with, and on another day there was no gas and another day it was the laundry that had been interfered with," he said.

Zwane said that the problems "looked like a pattern".

A surgeon at the hospital, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the problems, "ongoing for weeks", were "getting steadily worse".

Her main concern was the patients whose operations had been cancelled.

"We can't start operating without sterile drapes and operating gowns," she said. "Every day I ask if we have linen and then plan the day according to how much we have."

She said anaesthetists were not willing to continue with the surgical lists if the generators were on, " in case they cut out. It isn't safe".

"About 80 to 100 elective surgeries across all specialities are rescheduled every week."