Health authorities can redeploy medical staff
• Minister’s new regulations could worsen an already tense relationship with the trade unions
Health minister Zweli Mhize has published new regulations that give the government sweeping powers to redeploy doctors, nurses and other health-care personnel to combat SA’s Covid19 epidemic, in a move that could worsen an already tense relationship with trade unions.
It means health authorities such as provincial health departments will be able to move personnel from one facility to another, to quarantine sites, to another town, or even across provincial boundaries.
While in line with steps taken in many countries hard-hit by Covid-19 to ensure they make the best use of their human resources, the move is likely to stoke anger among unions already smouldering over the government’s recent decision to freeze wages.
The regulations were published the day before the start of the Easter long weekend and seem to have slipped under the radar.
None of the key unions representing health-care personnel working in the state sector appeared to be aware of the new powers granted to their employers when approached by Business Day.
“We were definitely not consulted,” said Angelique Coetzee,
chair of the South African Medical Association, SA’s biggest doctor organisation.
“To move personnel from one part of a province to another is against your job description as your post is allocated at a specific facility. You cannot take the right away from a person by deciding where that person should go and work without consultation,” Coetzee said, adding that employees were “not a pawn that can be moved to satisfy the chess player.”
BIGGEST UNIONS
The two biggest unions representing health-care personnel working for the state — the National Health, Education and Allied Workers Union and the Democratic Nurses Union of SA (Denosa) had not responded to Business Day’s request for comment at the time of publication.
The regulations, which were published in terms of the Disaster Management Act, aim to speed up the recruitment and redeployment of key personnel for combating Covid-19.
They are in line with department of public service and administration regulations regarding emergency recruitment options, and apply solely to people employed by the state, said health department spokesperson Popo Maja.
“Health authorities will approach health workers for possible deployments as and when necessary,” Maja said.
When asked whether labour had been consulted, he said: “Engagements are being held with unions at appropriate structures on an ongoing basis.”
It is not clear what scope health-care personnel have to say no to redeployment.
When the question was put to the Western Cape health department, its spokesperson Mark van der Heever said “redeployment is an engagement process between managers and their staff to ascertain whether any would be prepared to be redeployed”.
SHOULD SERVICE PRESSURE INCREASE EXPONENTIALLY, STAFF MAY BE REQUIRED TO RENDER SERVICES WHERE THE NEED IS GREATEST
In cases where workers refused to be redeployed, “each case will be dealt with on its merits”.
While an emergency situation required drastic action, it was vital that redeployed staff be provided with the appropriate training and equipment, said Solidarity’s sector head for its health-care guild Henru Kruger.
Van der Heever said that staff would be provided with training and transport if they were to be moved.
“Should service pressure increase exponentially, staff may be required to render services where the need is greatest, even if it is not their normal place of work.”
The Western Cape health department had already put out a call for volunteers, and received more than 850 applications, Van der Heever said.