Opinion / Columnist
This and that with Maluphosa Maluphosa: Ngeke ngilubhade eMaxeke
18 Sep 2011 at 11:28hrs | Views
Last week the Daily Sun reported about a man who suffered from paraphymosis having reported at Johannesburg (Charlotte Maxeke Hospital) and received no assistance. The 21 year old man from Vosloorus was said to be in such severe pain he could hardly walk or sit. He had been discharged after two days with barely a physical examination having been done on him. Said his disappointed mother, "No professional medical attention was given to my son. Instead, they only squeezed his sore and gave him painkillers."
A lot of not-so-pleasant things have been reported about this hospital, and the feeling has always been that the hospital is etremely careless when it comes to foreigners, especially undocumented ones. But the spokesman had a very unacademic explanation; "We are an academic hospital with a long list of patients..."
Siza's 24 year old daughter alomst died in the queue on the 5th of this month, at this academic hospital. She had unwisely ingested rat poison after a domestic dispute. She had been taken to hospital in an ambulance, unconscious and hyperventilating. She lay on the floor groaning and wretching uncontrolably from 9 in the morning to around 2 in the afternoon, when she finally got some "academic" attention.
What was more academic, though, was the report written by the staff.
They wrote at 1645hours that the woman had been admitted for mild chest pains, and their diagnosis was – pregnancy. They wrote that a number of tests had been done, including urinalysis. Siza said she girl was not able to stand, and she never passed any urine during between 9 and 7 ntambama.
She was then booked for G-scope, to be done the following day. But this also turned out to be another academic issue, as the poor girl never went even close to that department.
Then there is a report that states the girl had been given started on blood transfusion at eleven oclock, that is, before she had been seen by the staff. The report has blanks under sub-headings Temperature, Pulse, Respirations. Then, "Patient is awake and sitting in her bed. She is talkative and friendly. Patient is able to take care of her hygiene and elimination needs. No complaints raised." The doctor's report was a brief contrast; "25yr old admitted with parasuicide – ingestion of rat poison. "Do you see the discrepancies here? Patient is admitted at 2:45pm, and at 11am on the same day, she is commenced on blood transfusion. Secondly, she is admitted for trying to kill herself, but they diagnose "chest pains and pregnancy."
Thirdly, she is said to have been given two litres of blood to run within two hours, which statement is false. Well, may I tell you now that when she finally gained consciousness, she seized on the first opportunity she had to go straight home without being discharged, with a canula for drip in tissues, and with her file! And no one has bothered to follow her up.
A parasuicidal individual needs close supervision in case they attempt it also within the premises of the hospital. They need referal to a counsellor, even if kuse Ngutsheni. They need strong support systems from staff and family. But then this is an academic hospital. It means the hospital is of purely theoretical or speculative interest and is therefore excessively concerned with intellectual matters. It lacks experience of practical affairs. It is solely concerned with "studies ..., philosophy, rather than applied, technical, or professional aptitude." This, I guess, has been the missing piece of the puzzle.
Whoever goes there does so knowing they are a guinea pig or rat that can be dissceted, analysed and have tests done on them, so the academics can get first hand practicals on them. Once the academics have got whatever data they have so lusted for, you are no better than a soiled piece of dressing to be tossed into an incinerator.
But what are the lines of supervision at an academic hospital?
Students are happy to see a paraphymosis, or an assault case, or a parasuicide case. And after giggling mischivously and taking notes like they did with Siza's daughter, what else should they do to patients who report there? Who should supervise them as they do their tests and write their reports. Who should ensure that doctors orders are followed and that patients are discharged home or referred to the next appropiate level of health care.
My tutors at UBH would tel you, "The patient did not come to hospital to spend a peaceful night, talk and be friendly; or to raise complaints. Your report should reflect on the condition of the patient and what interventions were done to help the patient."
I remember one student who was expelled when she had "cooked" patient's temperature figures. Another was suspended for leaving blank the vital signs spaces – it was as bad as not done.
"Not in my ward," Sister Barry, In charge Grey Ward would say.
Matron Dube or Jena would roast you in your own miserly fat! They would not unleash an unfinished product into the society. Sister Masera would give you a straight red card e-Redrup. Any frail patient seen clutching a file, trudging aroung the hospital, with no escort was an offence one would pay for with their job!
So bantu bakithi, i-Johannesburg Hospital is not a hospital but a school. They gaffaw and learn about our conditions, and leave us on the benches when more intriguing and exciting conditions or cases arrive. If you were admitted there and some academics were desperate to observe isidumbu... ?
They write what they think we suffer from, never really bothering to extract it from us through a systematic history taking process, hence the wrong diagnoses; this is understandable because they need procedures to fill up their folios. Suppose you presented with a hydrocelle and all the academics have already recorded the required number of "hydrocelle cases seen", your hydrocelle would rupture ebhentshini. Once their procedure books are filled, the academics are allowed to be lazy and to gossip about disgusting service delivery at their local clinics and surburbs.
Ever wondered why one would follow an "enemy" e Bhara and finish them off with a gun? Security should never be so lax at hospitals. How did Siza's daughter escape from the ward and hospital with her file and all, without any one suspecting anything? If one were to ask the hospital where Siza's daughter was, what answer would one get? And how do we contribute to the Global Millennium Goals if we cannot manage "list of patients" in our sparsely populated village barely a kilometre in radius?
Finally there is a reason institutions are named after our heroes.
Charloote Maxeke was a God-fearing religious leader who was in later life elected president of the Women's Missionary Society. She would have loved to see patients at this hospital treated with sympathy, care, respect and dignity, not just as statistics. She was also a political leader who fought hard against pass laws. This institution would do much better treating people without discriminating ngokuthi lo uvelaphi or ulemali enganani. Just like I would not expect students from Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo to be lazy, considering Mqabuko's remarkable qualities. Mqabuko was not just the best president Zimbabwe never had, but also a paragon of virtue. Ngeke ngilubhade E-Maxeke ngisaphila.
Ngiyabonga mina.
A lot of not-so-pleasant things have been reported about this hospital, and the feeling has always been that the hospital is etremely careless when it comes to foreigners, especially undocumented ones. But the spokesman had a very unacademic explanation; "We are an academic hospital with a long list of patients..."
Siza's 24 year old daughter alomst died in the queue on the 5th of this month, at this academic hospital. She had unwisely ingested rat poison after a domestic dispute. She had been taken to hospital in an ambulance, unconscious and hyperventilating. She lay on the floor groaning and wretching uncontrolably from 9 in the morning to around 2 in the afternoon, when she finally got some "academic" attention.
What was more academic, though, was the report written by the staff.
They wrote at 1645hours that the woman had been admitted for mild chest pains, and their diagnosis was – pregnancy. They wrote that a number of tests had been done, including urinalysis. Siza said she girl was not able to stand, and she never passed any urine during between 9 and 7 ntambama.
She was then booked for G-scope, to be done the following day. But this also turned out to be another academic issue, as the poor girl never went even close to that department.
Then there is a report that states the girl had been given started on blood transfusion at eleven oclock, that is, before she had been seen by the staff. The report has blanks under sub-headings Temperature, Pulse, Respirations. Then, "Patient is awake and sitting in her bed. She is talkative and friendly. Patient is able to take care of her hygiene and elimination needs. No complaints raised." The doctor's report was a brief contrast; "25yr old admitted with parasuicide – ingestion of rat poison. "Do you see the discrepancies here? Patient is admitted at 2:45pm, and at 11am on the same day, she is commenced on blood transfusion. Secondly, she is admitted for trying to kill herself, but they diagnose "chest pains and pregnancy."
Thirdly, she is said to have been given two litres of blood to run within two hours, which statement is false. Well, may I tell you now that when she finally gained consciousness, she seized on the first opportunity she had to go straight home without being discharged, with a canula for drip in tissues, and with her file! And no one has bothered to follow her up.
A parasuicidal individual needs close supervision in case they attempt it also within the premises of the hospital. They need referal to a counsellor, even if kuse Ngutsheni. They need strong support systems from staff and family. But then this is an academic hospital. It means the hospital is of purely theoretical or speculative interest and is therefore excessively concerned with intellectual matters. It lacks experience of practical affairs. It is solely concerned with "studies ..., philosophy, rather than applied, technical, or professional aptitude." This, I guess, has been the missing piece of the puzzle.
Whoever goes there does so knowing they are a guinea pig or rat that can be dissceted, analysed and have tests done on them, so the academics can get first hand practicals on them. Once the academics have got whatever data they have so lusted for, you are no better than a soiled piece of dressing to be tossed into an incinerator.
But what are the lines of supervision at an academic hospital?
Students are happy to see a paraphymosis, or an assault case, or a parasuicide case. And after giggling mischivously and taking notes like they did with Siza's daughter, what else should they do to patients who report there? Who should supervise them as they do their tests and write their reports. Who should ensure that doctors orders are followed and that patients are discharged home or referred to the next appropiate level of health care.
My tutors at UBH would tel you, "The patient did not come to hospital to spend a peaceful night, talk and be friendly; or to raise complaints. Your report should reflect on the condition of the patient and what interventions were done to help the patient."
I remember one student who was expelled when she had "cooked" patient's temperature figures. Another was suspended for leaving blank the vital signs spaces – it was as bad as not done.
"Not in my ward," Sister Barry, In charge Grey Ward would say.
Matron Dube or Jena would roast you in your own miserly fat! They would not unleash an unfinished product into the society. Sister Masera would give you a straight red card e-Redrup. Any frail patient seen clutching a file, trudging aroung the hospital, with no escort was an offence one would pay for with their job!
So bantu bakithi, i-Johannesburg Hospital is not a hospital but a school. They gaffaw and learn about our conditions, and leave us on the benches when more intriguing and exciting conditions or cases arrive. If you were admitted there and some academics were desperate to observe isidumbu... ?
They write what they think we suffer from, never really bothering to extract it from us through a systematic history taking process, hence the wrong diagnoses; this is understandable because they need procedures to fill up their folios. Suppose you presented with a hydrocelle and all the academics have already recorded the required number of "hydrocelle cases seen", your hydrocelle would rupture ebhentshini. Once their procedure books are filled, the academics are allowed to be lazy and to gossip about disgusting service delivery at their local clinics and surburbs.
Ever wondered why one would follow an "enemy" e Bhara and finish them off with a gun? Security should never be so lax at hospitals. How did Siza's daughter escape from the ward and hospital with her file and all, without any one suspecting anything? If one were to ask the hospital where Siza's daughter was, what answer would one get? And how do we contribute to the Global Millennium Goals if we cannot manage "list of patients" in our sparsely populated village barely a kilometre in radius?
Finally there is a reason institutions are named after our heroes.
Charloote Maxeke was a God-fearing religious leader who was in later life elected president of the Women's Missionary Society. She would have loved to see patients at this hospital treated with sympathy, care, respect and dignity, not just as statistics. She was also a political leader who fought hard against pass laws. This institution would do much better treating people without discriminating ngokuthi lo uvelaphi or ulemali enganani. Just like I would not expect students from Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo to be lazy, considering Mqabuko's remarkable qualities. Mqabuko was not just the best president Zimbabwe never had, but also a paragon of virtue. Ngeke ngilubhade E-Maxeke ngisaphila.
Ngiyabonga mina.
Source - Clerk Ndlovu
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