NEWS
Tuesday 4 September 2012
People’s Post Mitchell's Plain Page 9
Better service at ‘Plain MOU LAILA MAJIET
MOTHERS expecting are allowed to be accompanied by one person when in labour at the Mitchell’s Plain Maternity and Obstetrics Unit (MOU). However, a teen mother says she was not allowed to have her partner or mother at her bedside when she went in to labour last month. She says while the service at the MOU has improved significantly since the provincial minister of health was forced to intervene in mid-August, there is still room for improvement. The 19-year-old mother from New Woodlands says when she arrived at the facility for her check-up on Monday 13 August, she noted a visible improvement. “There was soap and toilet paper in the bathrooms. The floors were no longer wet. The toilets could flush. The staff who I initially complained about welcomed me and treated me as any patient should be treated. The operations manager even came in to the waiting area to greet all the patients,” she says. However the patient’s mother and boyfriend were put out of the MOU and left to wait in the freezing cold while the teenager was in labour. Speaking to People’s Post on condition of anonymity, the 19-year-old father says: “It’s ridiculous that we had to wait in the freezing cold until shortly before 03.00 on Tuesday. I asked the security if I could go and see my partner and she said no. I asked if I could sit inside the MOU and the security refused to allow us in. My girlfriend’s mom’s neck was already becoming stiff from the cold so I went in and spoke to a nurse on duty who said we could come and wait inside.” Five people who had relatives giving birth at the MOU had also been left standing in the cold that night, he adds. “It is pathetic that fathers are not allowed to support their partner’s while they are in labour,” he says. The provincial health department’s Angelique Jordaan says that no staff member or security guard us allowed to illtreat patients and their relatives. She confirmed that a nurse intervened to address the patient’s relatives’ concerns. “The sister on duty at the time intervened by allowing the patient’s companions in.” Jordaan says it is important for patients and visitors to the facility to alert the staff members on duty of unsatisfactory service so that such incidents can be addressed immediately.
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A BUNDLE OF JOY: A teenage mother from New Woodlands says she is glad that her complaints during her pregnancy with her daughter has brought about improvements at the Mitchell’s Plain MOU. The provincial minister of health, Theuns Botha, further encourages patients to lay formal complaints about poor service at the MOU. “I want to encourage patients to address their complaints to the facility. Complaints help us to understand our problems and where we should intervene. At the same time our staff are dealing with larger numbers of patients. Our facilities are overloaded and we do our best to offer access to everyone.” The teen mother was transferred to Mowbray Maternity Hospital after her baby’s heart rate dropped during labour. The baby’s father explains his experience at Mowbray Maternity Hospital in comparison to that at the Mitchell’s Plain MOU. “I was allowed to accompany my girlfriend into the labour ward. We were also allowed to park inside the hospital. Had they allowed us to do this at the MOU, it would not have been so bad as we could have at least taken shelter in the car while waiting for my partner to give birth,” the father says. The first-time mom explains her pleasant experience at the MOU following provincial minister of health’s visit to the maternity unit. The teen mother from New Woodlands says the nurses were grateful as Botha’s visit brought much-needed relief to the sometimes dire conditions under which nurses work. “When I went for my checkup the nurses hugged me and thanked me for going to the newspapers as they now even have soap to wash their hands and there is sufficient toilet paper at the facility,” she says.
Reward offered after double murder POLICE have offered a R50 000 reward for the arrest and successful conviction of suspects wanted for the murder of two Mitchell’s Plain residents. The victims had been found dead in an open field at the Strandfontein Treatment Plant on Monday 18 June. “Police discovered the bodies of 30-year-old Christopher van Rooi who was shot and 24year-old Lee-Ann Ram who was burnt be-
yond recognition. A murder case is open,” says provincial police spokesperson FC Van Wyk. He says the motive is unknown at this stage and the hunt for the suspects continues. Anyone with information is to contact the investigating officer Detective Warrant Officer Pieter Joubert on 074 367 8326 or (021) 370 1733 or Crime Stop on 08600 10111.
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