ONLY FEW days after intern-doctors were paid their outstanding two-months salaries, senior doctors and nurses are on a strike at the Chris Hani-Baragwanath Hospital.
Bone of contention: the department has decided to cut posts at some of state owned hospitals in the province (Baragwanath included), which were created to deal with the pandemic.
Today, employees that included doctors, nurses and cleaners picketed as they allude the decision would impact on the hospital’s capacity to deal with the high volumes of patients, amongst others.
About 800 nurses and doctors were employed by the department of health, in temporary posts to deal with the pandemic two years ago but would now have to let go of some of them.
The department said the cuts were due to budget constraints.
Some of those 800 posts in the province would not be renewed for this coming financial year.
Kwara Kekana- health department spokesperson said its budget for the employment of these posts was sliced in half compared to last year.
“The allocated amount will not be sufficient to cater for the total cost of reappointment of all categories of employment on contract for the financial year of 2022/2023,” she said.
The picket saw a popular figure Professor Shabir Madhi, a virologist, who said cutting of this much needed posts will deal a great blow to the country.
This week, the MEC for finance in Gauteng- Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko, allocated R36bn to some of the hospitals in Gauteng, Baragwanath included for refurbishment.
