2 April 2025
MBOMBELA – The Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA) in Mpumalanga is deeply disappointed by the Provincial Department of Health’s failure to appoint nursing graduates from 2023 and 2024. As the new financial year begins, DENOSA urges the Department to prioritize these nurses and employ them without further delay.
The government has invested state resources in training nurses to address both unemployment and the critical shortage of healthcare workers. Yet, despite this, the Department has failed to appoint them. This is especially concerning given that Mpumalanga has only one nursing college, which admits just 70 students per year—a number far too small to meet the province’s growing healthcare needs.
Furthermore, the 113 nurses who graduated in 2024 represent the last cohort trained under the legacy qualification, which included midwifery and psychiatric nursing. At a time when the province is no longer offering midwifery training and mental health cases are rising, it is imperative that these nurses—as well as those who completed their training in previous years—are absorbed into the workforce.
Adding to the crisis, over 200 qualified professional nurses are currently being exploited, as they are registered professional nurses but continue to be paid as enrolled nurses. This is an unacceptable violation of their rights and professional status.
Mpumalanga’s public healthcare system is already overburdened due to severe staff shortages, increasing patient loads, and a worsening disease burden. Reports from healthcare workers in the province indicate that nurses are forced to manage overwhelming patient numbers, often handling cases beyond their scope due to a lack of available staff.
In maternity wards, the shortage of midwives is particularly alarming, with some facilities struggling to provide adequate maternal care, leading to higher risks for pregnant women and newborns. The lack of psychiatric nurses also jeopardizes mental health services, which are already insufficient despite the growing number of mental health care users across the country.
Moreover, many experienced nurses are leaving South Africa in search of better wages and working conditions, worsening an already critical shortage. The failure to appoint newly qualified nurses not only contradicts the government’s own investment in healthcare education but also deepens the crisis by allowing skills to go to waste while patients suffer.
DENOSA demands that the Mpumalanga Department of Health immediately:
- Advertise and fill posts for the 120 internal nurses who completed the Diploma in Nursing (Bridging Course) and the 113 nurses who completed the Diploma in Nursing (General, Psychiatry & Community) and Midwifery.
- Appoint professional nurses who graduated from 2021 onwards and are still being underpaid as enrolled nurses, ending their exploitation.
- Develop a clear and transparent Provincial absorption plan for nursing graduates going forward, ensuring that no qualified nurse remains unemployed while public health facilities are in dire need of staff.
The non-employment of qualified nurses directly compromises the Constitutional right of South Africans to access healthcare services. With rising population numbers, increased disease outbreaks, and an overworked healthcare workforce, DENOSA urges the Department of Health in the province to act immediately before the situation worsens, putting both nurses and patients at even greater risk.
END.
Issued by DENOSA in Mpumalanga
For more information, contact: Cyril Mdhluli, Provincial Secretary.
Mobile: 072 564 0136
