FOCUS Access to tertiary
FOCUS Access to tertiary health services is increasing Shift to universal coverage underway. The North West Province has experienced historical deprivation in terms of specialised tertiary health services. The apartheid health system put high-tech medical equipment and resources in predominantly white towns while the rest of the historically disadvantaged communities had little or no access to such services. Since the dawn of democracy, government has been at work ensuring that the majority who are the poor have access to quality health care services. The catalyst to health reform has been a new health dispensation with a shift in policy towards “universal health coverage” as envisaged by the National Health Insurance (NHI). The phased implementation of the NHI enables all South Africans to access quality and comprehensive health services, which will be free at the point of service. In the North West Province, Dr Kenneth Kaunda District, which is a pilot district, has seen commendable progress in specialised tertiary health services since 1994. In 2016/17 the first-ever heart operation was performed in the province through a partnership between Klerksdorp/Tshepong Hospital, Job Shimankana Tabane Hospital and Netcare Ferncrest. This is a cardiac catherisation and cardiac service. Since then, 20 further patients with heart conditions were successfully operated on and resumed their normal productive lives. The North West Department of Health established the Paediatric Surgery unit whereby children are now operated in the hospital where before they were referred to Baragwanath Hospital in Gauteng. In 2015/16, the department established cardiothoracic surgery where patients with different diseases of the lung cavity were operated on. In 2014/15, the department managed to conduct operations on cancers in the brain, spine and stomach. The Burns unit at Klerksdorp-Tshepong operated on patients promptly, leading to quick recovery without being exposed to infections Health MEC Dr Magome Masike addressing doctors and dentists about National Health Insurance at a gathering in Klerksdorp. from travelling long distances. In recent times, the province saw the expansion of chemotherapy services that was achieved through renovating Ward 8, converting it into a chemotherapy suite with increased capacity to accommodate demands. Treatment of various categories of cancers is now achieved without delays. NORTH WEST BUSINESS 2019 14
FOCUS North West Provincial Government One of the beneficiaries and the first-ever patient to receive a heart operation in the province is Mr Sarel de Beer who presented to the surgical department at Tshepong Hospital with a threatened limb due to an embolic phenomenon. He needed open-heart surgery for an atrial myxoma, which is a benign growth within one of the chambers of the heart. The patient was taken to Rustenburg and successfully operated on. "This success is testimony to the fact that the province has managed to recruit and retain the best specialists. We will continue to work hard to retain them, recruit more and address the chronic challenge of health professionals especially the specialists," said North West MEC for Health, Dr Magome Masike. Dr Masike recently said that the province will continue to improve access to health care services and ensure that the historically disadvantaged population benefit. “Our people deserve the best. Quality specialised tertiary services must reach all our people. We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that all specialised services which were previously not available to our province are accessible to our people,” said Dr Masike. Health MEC Dr Magome Masike visits a recovering heart patient. 15 NORTH WEST BUSINESS 2019
