Gauteng health department underperforms: DA

The Gauteng department of health has missed nearly 60% of the targets it set out to complete in the last financial year, the Democratic Alliance said on Tuesday.

DA Gauteng health spokesman Jack Bloom said the department's annual report for 2011/12 revealed that it missed 117 of 210 targets.

"It's an abysmal performance, but no surprise to patients who get poor treatment at Gauteng hospitals and clinics," he said in a statement.

"Poor management is to blame, particularly in areas where the budget was actually not fully spent."

The Gauteng department of health was not immediately available for comment.

Bloom said ambulances had responded to 33% of priority one emergencies within 15 minutes, instead of its 65% target.

More than R90 million of the emergency services' R788 million budget was not spent.

With the machinery and equipment budget, R257 million of the R419 million budget was not spent, while R132 million of the R722 million set aside for building costs was not utilised.

"This shows incredible incompetence that needs to be rooted out from this failing department," Bloom said.