By Gabi Khumalo
Springs – Watching your sick child lying helplessly in a hospital is not easy for any mother - let alone having to spend nights on a hard, unsympathetic hospital bench.
This has been the life of 28-year-old mother Zanele Mkhize, from Kingsway in Benoni, since her arrival at the Far East Rand Hospital after her nine-year-old daughter was admitted for burn injuries.
Since the Paediatric Ward only accommodates sick children admitted at the hospital, Mkhize with other mothers are forced to sleep on the hospital benches as they are unable to travel to and from hospital on a daily basis, due to financial constraints.
Some of the mothers are breastfeeding and have to be close to their babies most of the time.
“I’ve brought my blanket but sleeping on the bench is very painful not to mention the cold at night, but I have to because I don’t have money to come to the hospital,” Mkhize told SAnews.
On Tuesday, Mkhize shed tears of joy as she and other mothers entered the hospital’s new Mother’s Lodge and a Paediatric Step-down Facility opened by Gauteng Health Department Health MEC, Hope Papo. The facility is a collaborated effort by government, Lonmin, the local community and the hospital.
Lonmin invested R800 000 for the 18 beds at Mother’s Lodge, where breastfeeding mothers as well as mothers like Mkhize will now be able to sleep over in the facility, increasing mother-child bonding. The lodge also includes a kitchen and a lounge area.
The Divhani Rasanova Paediatric Step-down Facility has a doctor’s room, store room, bathroom, medical area, changing area, play area as well as a reading area. The facility will at any given time accommodate an average of 450 mothers on a rotational basis.
The facility is a place for new born babies admitted at the hospital for long periods and whose mothers cannot afford to commute to and from the hospital daily as well as those without family support. It will assist in strengthening the quality of paediatric services in the province.
Handing over the facility, Papo commended Lonmin for entering in the partnership with the department and identifying the area of need.
“The service we are launching today is an integrated one; we express our gratitude to Lonmin for partnering with us and the hospital. As our partners, we commend you for making our social plan a reality,” said Papo.
Accepting the facility, Hospital CEO Dr Lekopane Mogaladi recalled that when he arrived at the hospital in February, there were no mattresses and mothers were sleeping on the floor.
“The look on their faces touched me and made me wonder if I was in their situation, how would I have survived.
“The facility is a challenge for me and the management to further ensure that services across the entire institution do not bedevil the confidence shown by our partners. We can only turn for the better from here,” said Mogaladi.
He added that he hoped the promises made by his colleagues including the social workers to engage mothers in activities, will be realised.
Senior Manager: Health at Lonmin, Dr Marie Vermaak said that her company is very proud of the relationship with the department, adding that working together as a company, community and government, they can achieve great things.
She also highlighted that it was fitting that the project focusses on mothers and children as the country approaches Woman’s Month in August.
“Lonmin acknowledges and supports the role of mothers and women in our company and our society, and we are happy to be able to assist the women of the communities served by the hospital,” said Vermaak.
The hospital was established in 1900 and forms part of the Ekurhuleni Sedibeng (Region B) servicing Springs, Brakpan, Daveyton, Benoni , Nigel and the Mpumalanga Province.
New and informal settlements alone account for 1 000 000 people in the region, many of whom rely on the hospital for their healthcare. – SAnews.gov.za
