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TUESDAY 28 July 2020 | Tel: 021 910 6500 | Email: post@peoplespost.co.za | Website: www.peoplespost.co.za
EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
Ancient ECD in limbo KAYLYNNE BANTOM KAYLYNNE.BANTOM@MEDIA24.COM
W
hile Early Childhood Development centres (ECDs) countrywide are now allowed to operate again, providing they adhere to strict health and safety protocols, many centres will not be reopening due to the significant impact the national lockdown had on them. One such ECD is the Kensington Educare Centre. The centre closed its doors in March at the start of the national lockdown. It now faces the heart-breaking reality of permanent closure due to the immense financial loss it suffered. The centre was established 75 years ago and is run by the Union of Jewish Women (UJW), a nonprofit organisation (NPO). The NPO aims to offer skills training, fund educational programmes and establish crèches and nursery schools in disadvantaged areas. Wendy Claasen, the principal at the centre for the past 12 years, says while the UWJ is responsible for the overall running costs of the crèche, teachers’ salaries are covered by monthly fees paid by parents. She says many parents have either been retrenched or are facing financial constraints as a result of the lockdown and it has a direct im-
pact on the centre. “We are very sad. The crèche has been part of the community for many years. We had more than 80 kids between two years old and Grade R. We were one of the ECDs with the lowest fees.” She says some of the educators have been at the centre for more than 28 years. “Our cook has been here for the past 33 years. It is devastating,” explains Claasen. She says what is even more heart-wrenching is having to watch some of the children, who attended the crèche, now roaming the streets. Kevin Alexander, a community activist, says: “Residents need to band together and brainstorm fundraising efforts to urgently rescue this institution. There are many corporates in this community who can assist here in giving back.” Alexander says the crèche is an iconic institution in the history of Kensington and Factreton. “Many big names started their schooling here,” he says. Claasen says the only way that the centre can be saved is if generous donors, such as companies, come on board to assist them financially. “The school might be able to reopen if we get a financial boost. We are appealing to anyone to come forward and help us save Kensington Educare Centre.” V For details on how to contribute to the ECD, email ujwcreche@telkomsa.net.
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Patient discharged after 77 days
Zuliswa Maqana was discharged after 77 days in hospital. PHOTO: GROOTE SCHUUR HOSPITAL
KAYLYNNE BANTOM “I am thankful for life and I want to encourage people to realise that Covid-19 is real, and we must take care of ourselves.” These are the words of Zuliswa Maqana, who recovered from Covid-19 after spending 77 days in Groote Schuur Hospital (GSH). The hospital said in a press statement that Maqana was one of the longest hospitalised Covid-19 patients across the provincial public health service. Maqana (49) says she started feeling ill on Tuesday 28 April and decided to seek medical care. The mother of two says she got tablets and was told to return in a few days. But on Monday 4 May Maqana was rushed to Mitchell’s Plain District Hospital and was admitted with severe Covid-19 pneumonia. A day later she was transferred to Grooter Schuur and was immediately admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) where she was intubated and ventilated for 51 days out of her 54-day ICU stay. “I don’t know what happened be-
tween May and June as I was in a coma. My family was worried about me and thought I was not going to make it. My mom, who lives in the Eastern Cape, came down to Cape Town to look after my house and my 16-year-old daughter,” explains Maqana. Dr Henri Pickardt, general surgeon at Groote Schuur, says: “It was a rocky course through the ICU with complications and other infections along the way. Eventually, she left the ICU on 28 June and arrived in ward F5. She could hardly talk or walk on arrival in the ward, but slowly grew stronger, as she was rehabilitated by physiotherapy and nursing. One of the infections she had required her to complete a four-week intravenous antibiotic course.” Maqana’s recovery was a slow but steady one and she was finally allowed to go home to her family on Monday 20 July. “The medical care she received transformed her into the radiant patient who danced out of the hospital on Monday,” explained Pickardt. Maqana expressed her gratitude
to the hospital staff who cared for her. “Everybody was so nice to me and the doctors were wonderful. I am so happy with the treatment I got at Groote Schuur. I didn’t know what day it was when I entered the hospital and I couldn’t move for weeks. But they helped me learn how to walk again after 77 days. And they were all so happy for me when I could go home.” Dr Keith Cloete, head of the provincial health department, thanked staff for their specialist care to Maqana and other patients. “We know our staff work under challenging circumstances during this pandemic, but it is heartwarming episodes such as this and all the other wonderful stories we have been privileged to experience which does so much to continue to inspire our staff to be on the frontline in taking care of our patients.” Jubilation could be heard down the passage from the ward where Maqana was treated as she made her exit. Maqana says she is grateful for a second chance at life and hopes to see her daughter, who is currently in Grade 11, matriculate.