EDITORIAL | Where do we draw the line at propping up services?

It was heartening to see the skilled hands of volunteers hard at work this weekend reducing a backlog of surgeries at the only tertiary hospital in the Northern Cape.

A team including theatre nurses and anaesthetists from Cape Town — volunteers from Gift of the Givers — engaged in a “marathon surgery” of back-to-back operations — with the blessing of the provincial health department and Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe Hospital in Kimberley. The backlog, running into hundreds and worsened by the pandemic, includes patients who have waited months for a potentially life-saving operation.

The hospital put out a plea for help, eliciting a favourable response from a variety of stakeholders. Seventy-two surgical procedures were successfully completed this weekend, demonstrating the immense value and potential of such partnerships in the public health sector. Another surgery backlog catch-up session is in the pipeline.

“When you remove ego, red tape, bureaucracy and add commitment, love, spirituality and dedication, you make an indelible life-altering difference to the lives of those whose hope lies in fellow man,” Gift of the Givers said afterwards, sharing a word of gratitude to the provincial health department and hospital staff.

The efforts of all parties, working together for the greater good of patients in need, are to be commended. Team work, as the saying goes, makes the dream work.

Health minister Dr Joe Phaahla conceded in a recent answer to a parliamentary question that R121m has been lost through corruption at provincial hospitals since January 2020.

One can observe similar interventions by various organisations across SA to plug holes where government or municipal services are lacking, from the fixing of potholes to the drilling of boreholes, provision of water, security and equipment.

This is fantastic news on one hand but cause for concern on the other.

Many of these gaping wounds being dressed and bandaged are funded by ratepayers and taxpayers for services they rightfully expect to materialise. How far will we venture down this pathway, expending time, money and effort to prop up the provision of services? And where does one draw the line?

In the sand, when it comes to government funding allocated for services, such as public health care and education, being squirrelled away in myriad corrupt schemes designed to fleece the public purse for the benefit of a select few.

Health minister Dr Joe Phaahla conceded in a recent answer to a parliamentary question that R121m has been lost through corruption at provincial hospitals since January 2020. The worst affected province was Mpumalanga at more than R58m, followed by North West (R27m) and the Free State (R24m).

A tough, zero-tolerance stance must be taken against this rampant pilfering that so often makes headlines. Stopping the rot here, now, must be a top priority so that this funding can be used for its intended purpose.

Until then hospitals or police stations, by way of example, cannot be absolved of their obligations to provide services if they become too dependent on outside help to keep the wheels turning.

It’s a fine balance to strike and one which, one hopes, is found for the greater good of us all.