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Outcomes of DENOSA KZN PEC meeting
Media statement
Wednesday, 12 December 2018
The Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA) in KwaZulu-Natal held its Provincial Executive Committee (PEC) meeting, which concluded on Monday, wherein it deliberated and resolved on key pertinent issues that affect nurses in the province.
The PEC had invited MEC of Health in the province, Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo, due to many concerns over a number of issues. But the MEC was unavailable and delegated the HOD to attend the PEC on his behalf.
On announcement to create 5300 posts
Among others, the HOD took the PEC through the announcement by Health Minister of the National Health Council’s decision to create the 5300 posts countrywide.
After thorough deliberations, the PEC resolved that it totally rejects the allocation to the province of 150 posts for Enrolled Nurses, 150 for Enrolled Nursing Assistants and not a single Professional Nurse. As DENOSA KZN, we appreciate the intention of the President to focus on health in his economic stimulus package, but we don’t accept the approach of the minister of not showing appreciation of nurses in a province that is in dire need of professional nurses.
“Our interest as KZN is: how did they arrive at the conclusion that only enrolled nurses and enrolled nursing assistants are needed in the province, whereas the situation on the ground indicates strongly that we need more professional nurses?” asks DENOSA KZN Provincial Secretary, Mandla Shabangu.
“Many clinics and hospitals on the rural outskirts are headed by enrolled nurses! If you were to visit a facility in a district like Mkhanyakude or Msunduzi at night, you will find staff nurses running wards and administering medication to patients, and not a single professional nurse in that unit – which are the categories that should be doing that.”
DENOSA KZN believes that Dr Motsoaledi must be told by Chief Nursing Officers on what is needed on the ground so that he does not pronounce on what is not really needed in the province. If he has consulted Chief Nursing Officers and they gave him this feedback that only enrolled nurses and enrolled nursing assistants are needed in KZN, then the Chief Nursing Officers let nurses down.
Furthermore, these posts are not new positions, but filling of vacant positions that have not been filled many years ago whenever nurses left the service and were never replaced – it is an attempt to normalize the staffing levels today which should have been normalized in 2012. The announcement has not even attempted to deal with the current crisis caused by annual growth in population figures.
DENOSA KZN is happy that at last porters and cleaners and other support staff will be employed, because the tasks of these cadres have been performed by nurses for far too long.
On continuous safety concerns in the workplace
The PEC deliberated on the continuing lack of safety of our members in many health facilities without any tangible intervention from the Department of Health. At King Edward Hospital, renovations that are taking place are still posing a serious health and safety risk to our members. Lifts are not working at the facility.
Similarly, at Addington Hospital, lifts are not working and this has rendered the trauma unit non-functional. Nurses are forced to use stairs every single day to climb to the upper levels with patients, which is a serious risk to them and to patients.
The PEC resolved that the MEC of Health must give DENOSA the undertaking on when these renovations will be completed at these two facilities. If they continue until end of this month, DENOSA will on 1 January 2019 instruct its members to only report for duty at ground floor and not use the stairs with patients.
On non-nursing duties
The PEC discussed the ongoing issue of non-nursing duties where nurses continue to do the work of porters, collection of blood samples and cleaning. The PEC resolved that, by 1 January, no nurse should embark on this work because it is not within their scope of practice.
On New Curriculum and CPD
The PEC expressed a serious concern over the lack of information to nurses on the new nursing curriculum and CPD from the nursing regulatory body, the South African Nursing Council (SANC). Failure by SANC and the Department of Health to inform nurses on the developments is leaving them with great confusion. The PEC resolved to engage the Department of Health to conduct workshops for nurses across the province, because it cannot be fair that they are left in the dark for such a long period without certainty about their career.
The PEC resolved that DENOSA Professional Institute (DPI) will carry out this work of information sharing for our members from the beginning of the New Year, because waiting for the South African Nursing Council will leave them in the dark for far longer periods.
End
Issued by the Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA) in KwaZulu-Natal
For more information, contact:
Mandla Shabangu, DENOSA Provincial Secretary
Mobile: 072 151 5874
Tel: 031 305 1417
