The security cost for Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital has soared to R77m a year compared to R22m 10 years ago.
This was confirmed by Gauteng health MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko in a written reply to questions from veteran DA MPL Jack Bloom in the Gauteng legislature.
Calvin and Family Security Services was awarded a three-year contract worth R232m. It provides 275 security staff, including 248 low-paid grade C officers.
Bloom said this amounts to about R23,000 per worker a month, while most grade C security officers earn about R6,000 a month.
He questioned why the province's hospital security costs had increased so much, also citing the R72m a year spent on security at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Hospital, up from R35m three years ago.
Bloom called for a review of the “soaring hospital security costs which divert money needed to improve patient care”.
He also disclosed that Bara CEO Dr Nthabiseng Makgana, who was appointed last year, is paying for extra guards and security vehicles.
The department said she “has elected, at her own expense, to secure additional protection based on her personal risk assessment and security needs”.
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