Mid Term Report - Gauteng Online

Key challenges which the provincial government hascontinued to address include the reduction of waitingtimes in health facilities and addressing apparent disparitiesin the provision of services between districts,provincial and central hospitals. This includes:• Strengthening queue managers appointed athospitals to reduce waiting times.• Encouraging level one patients to use clinicsrather than flock to central hospitals, addressingthe perception of poor quality services at clinicscompared to hospitals and establishing gatewayclinics.• Improving the dispensing of chronic medicationto reduce waiting times.• Enhancing health human resource strategies toattract and retain highly qualified human resourceprofessionals.• Implementing the provincialisation of the provisionof primary health care services in line withthe National Health Act.Priorities aheadThe central challenge remains ensuring universaland equitable access to the range of educationand health care services provided by government inGauteng as well as improving the quality of theseservices.In particular, the challenge remains to continue to re-verse apartheid’s legacy in access to quality educationto improve the quality of education of the Africanchild. This includes continuing to address overcrowdingand ensuring the provision of decent facilities aswell as improving the quality of teaching. Literacyand numeracy levels need to be improved to givemore people access to better economic opportunitiesand maths, science and technology education needsto be prioritised. The ECD strategy needs to be effectivelyimplemented to ensure that every child has firmfoundations from which to realise their full potential.The roll of FET colleges in the development of ourskills base needs to be maximised, including ensuringan equitable channeling of resources to FETs andinstitutions of higher learning.Finally, the Gauteng HRD strategy needs to be effectivelyimplemented in partnership with the privatesector, labour and other stakeholders.In health care, the provincial government needs tocontinue, and step up its efforts, to improve the qualityof health care at all levels and ensure the effectiveimplementation of the comprehensive strategy onHIV and Aids. An effective human resources strategyshould be implemented to ensure that the health caresystem in Gauteng has adequate capacity, and toimprove the retention, recruitment and training anddevelopment scarce skills, including at primary healthcare level.44 • Midterm Report - 2004/06