We are working under dangerous circumstances‚ say medical staff

25 October 2017 - 14:25 By Penwell Dlamini
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Bathrooms at the Thelle Mogoerane Hospital in Vooslorus have had taps stolen as security guards have gone on strike.
Bathrooms at the Thelle Mogoerane Hospital in Vooslorus have had taps stolen as security guards have gone on strike.
Image: Supplied

The strike by security guards at the Thelle Mogoerane (Natalspruit) Hospital in Vosloorus is beginning to pose threats to the safety of the medical staff and all other workers at the facility.

Since the strike began on October 19‚ all those who work at the hospital have been doing so unguarded.

A psychiatric patient has committed suicide and a number of patients have been living in the regional hospital without proper clearance from the hospital.

On Wednesday‚ the security guards‚ dressed in their traditional blue and navy uniforms‚ sat next to the hospital’s parking lot and watched as a patient walked out of the hospital with nobody declaring him fit to go.

No contingency plan to deal with security has been implemented at this regional hospital - and thugs have already spotted their opportunity. In the bathrooms on the ground floor of the hospital‚ all the taps in the male toilets have been stolen.

But the medical staff are hardest hit by the strike.

“We are working under very difficult circumstances‚” said one medical worker‚ who did not want to be named. “Our lives and those of patients are in danger. Patients who have been injured in violent fights come to this hospital to be treated. Someone can just come through the entrance‚ into their wards and finish them off.”

“The situation is worse for those in psychiatric wards‚ where patients can also become violent‚” the medical staffer said. “It is really a risky situation that needs urgent attention.”

Earlier on Wednesday‚ medical staff and other workers at the hospital chased senior management personnel away from the hospital.

The Trade Union of Security Industry in SA (Tusisa) visited its members at the hospital and commended them for downing tools on the day.

Despite concerns for their safety‚ the medical and administration staff has continued to do their jobs‚ hoping a quick solution would be found before the security situation got out of hand.

Security guards from Sidas Security Guards went on strike after they were not paid on October 17. Tusisa asked its members to give the company one day’s grace to effect payment. When they were still not paid on October 19‚ the 167 guards at the hospital stopped working.

Each day‚ the guards report for duty‚ sign their attendance register and then simply sit down to wait for their salaries. Their union has advised them to keep coming to the hospital so that‚ as soon as they receive their money‚ they can simply go back to work immediately.

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