Newsroom
AHP doctors hanging in there during the strike
Almost two weeks since the start of the nationwide strike by essential service workers, doctors at South Africa's public hospitals are still valiantly hanging in, determinedly striving to ensure that patients are able to access continuous care. Most have put in long hours, going far beyond their regular duties, and often in the midst of violence and intimidation. Despite this, the doctors we spoke to, from facilities across South Africa, remain amazingly optimistic.
In general, the strike situation at urban hospitals, such as Baragwanath (in Soweto) and Helen Joseph (in Johannesburg), was far more aggressive than the action experienced in the rural areas. Last week, our doctors on the ground reported that Baragwanath eventually had to be shut down to the public, while the army was called in to intervene at both facilities. Intimidation had been serious, including some incidents of staff having to barricade themselves inside.
In the smaller towns, however, intimidation was slightly more subtle: working doctors came out to find that their tyres had been slashed, for example. There, the most destructive action was really the barricading of hospitals, denying access to patients, caregivers or suppliers. In some hospitals, patients had been without food for days, until charitable donors stepped in.
With most of the nursing and administration staff on strike, however, doctors had their work cut out for them. In some facilities, they could only attend to services like delivery and emergencies. In one hospital, newborns had to be transferred out to private clinics. One very serious issue was the closure of pharmacies, meaning that patients on uninterruptible regimens such as ARVs were left in the lurch. At one facility, the counsellors have stepped into this particular breach with home visits to disseminate medication.
Inspiring acts of heroism: the only major upside to any human crisis. Let's hope that an agreement is reached soon, and that doctors can return to building the new future we want for our hospitals.
