Health MEC says Tembisa Hospital implementing plans to ensure stability

Gauteng health MEC Dr Nomathemba Mokgethi on Wednesday said the department’s internal audit and compliance unit conducted a random audit at Tembisa Hospital in August last year and recommended that control measures be strengthened at the facility.

Responding to a question in the legislature, Mokgethi said the random audit was sanctioned by the department’s CFO Lerato Madyo  as part of efforts to ensure the hospital adhered to supply chain management and financial management policies.

Two weeks ago, the Gauteng government placed Madyo and Tembisa Hospital CEO Ashley Mthunzi on precautionary suspension with immediate effect.

It said that was to ensure they do not impede the investigation into serious allegations concerning improper procurement and payment of service providers at the hospital.

The provincial government also said the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has been appointed to investigate the allegations, with urgency.

Mokgethi said on Wednesday the aim of the random audit was to advise on best practices on how to improve financial management performance and also to ensure that the hospital gets value for money when procuring goods and services.

She said the random audit covered a number of areas, including testing whether procurement was made using central supplier database systems and whether orders were placed in line with supply chain management procurement delegations. 

Mokgethi said recommendations were made after the internal audit process, with an aim to improve business operations and address shortfalls.

Some recommendations included that the management of the facility should improve the effectiveness of its internal controls over supply chain management processes to ensure compliance with prescripts and applicable legislation and also that the accounting officer should implement consequence management for officials  who contravened laws and regulations.

Mokgethi said the audit report was shared with Mthunzi and management of the hospital to ensure they were able to act on it.

She said the hospital has since put in place a mitigation plan which includes appointing a bid adjudication committee and appointing additional human resources.

The department said its internal control measures were not a forensic audit, and therefore it was important to allow the SIU to conclude its work.

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