Residents protest over ‘filthy’ clinic
Danie van der Lith PROTESTING Ritchie residents brought the local clinic to a standstill yesterday and demanded intervention from the Northern Cape Department of Health at the facility, which they said had become “a health risk”.
Hundreds of residents gathered in front of the Ritchie Clinic yesterday and burned tyres and debris, while preventing nurses and doctors from entering the facility, in protest against the “filthy conditions” at the clinic.
The angry residents said they were “fed up” with the unhygienic state of the clinic, where rubbish bins are overflowing and litter can be seen everywhere.
The cleaner apparently died in April and has not been replaced.
The residents also bemoaned the shortage of nurses and pharmacy staff, as well as the fact that there are no working telephones.
They yesterday vowed to continue their protest until conditions improved.
One Ritchie resident, Yvonne Morenyane, said that conditions at the clinic had become so bad that residents were afraid that they would contract illnesses there instead of getting treatment.
“It is absolutely filthy and has become more of a health risk than a place to get medical attention. We are scared of taking our babies and young children there, fearing what they might contract. We are humans, not animals, and feel we deserve better than this stinking, dirty clinic,” she said.
Another resident, Daphne Maklako, added that patients had to bring their own cellphones to use when making arrangements for transport following doctors’ referrals.
“There is not one working telephone line at the clinic. Patients must use their own cellphones and airtime if arrangements have to be made. This is unacceptable, as poor residents simply can’t afford this extra expense,” she said.
Elizabeth Seekoei said that the shortage of pharmacy staff meant that patients were often sent home without medication, even after sitting at the clinic the whole day.
Inside the clinic, overflowing rubbish bins, litter strewn over the floors and filthy consulting rooms containing used swabs and medical waste were observed, while a strong stench of urine filled the air. The bathroom floors were dirty and puddles of urine were evident.
A nurse, who stood outside the clinic as residents burned tyres, confirmed that the telephones were not working and agreed that the facility was “filthy”.
“It is not healthy to treat patients in a dirty environment. They are supposed to get better and not more sick while here,” she said.
The Northern Cape Department of Health did not respond to media enquiries yesterday.