The purpose of the visit is to assess the status of public health care facilities in the province. This is in line with the Commission’s mandate contained in Section 184(1) (b) of the Constitution, which obliges the Commission to promote the protection of human rights, monitor and assess the observance of human rights in the Republic of South Africa.

As part of his visit in the Province, the Chairperson, will be inspecting a number of health facilities with the view of gauging the status of public health care in the Province. The Chairperson has already commenced with a visit to Dr. Harry Sutton Hospital, on Sunday, the 29th September 2019, where the he found that the hospital was working with insufficient security staff.

This concerns the Chairperson, and the Commission as a whole, as the lack of security led to an inability to control visitors. As one example, the Pediatric Ward, which only allows three visitors per patient; in certain instances; had more than eight visitors per child, which poses both a health and security risk to babies, toddlers and children in the ward. The Chairperson found that the access control system was not working and that doors were broken, meaning that anyone could move freely without any restriction. The Chairperson met with Management of the Hospital who then explained that some staff had failed to report for work.

The Chairperson’s Provincial Visit will cover a number of regions within the Northern Cape, but will end with the Chairperson meeting with the Premier of the Northern Cape, Zamani Saul, as well as the Member of the Executive Committee (MEC) of Health and the Head of Department (HOD) of Health in the Northern Cape, at Sol Plaatje University, in Kimberley at 09:00 AM on the 4th October 2019.

Ends
Issued by the South African Human Rights Commission

For further information or enquiries, Contact: Research Advisor to Chairperson Ms Ncumisa Willie on 076 553 8389 email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.