Mpilo Hospital in Bulawayo yesterday was reportedly turning away patients as their outpatients’ section is closed and the casualty department is only attending to life-threatening emergencies, The Chronicle reports.
Patients were reportedly turned away by security guards at the main gate despite the fact that security personnel are not qualified to determine if the case is an emergency or not.
Mpilo Hospital’s clinical director Dr Solwayo Ngwenya when contacted for comment about the development said:
The guards were OK to turn away some people who came to the entrances. We were only taking emergencies as the situation is dire. And by emergency, we mean someone who is at a point of life and death and someone who can walk to the hospital entrance is surely not an emergency case.
Emergency cases usually come by ambulance or are brought to the hospital by care givers. Even for those who will come by ambulance, we will still assess if they are indeed emergency cases, because some may take advantage and call an ambulance for a minor sickness.
Dr Ngwenya further said they were understaffed and they needed to minimize numbers. Meanwhile, UBH was operating normally and not turning away patients.
More: The Chronicle