Makhura earmarks coronavirus hospitals

GAUTENG has stepped up efforts to fight the killer coronavirus pandemic that has seen the province sit with the unwanted tag of being the epicentre of the disease in South Africa.

Premier David Makhura yesterday gave an update on behalf of the Gauteng provincial command council on the measures put in place to combat the spread of Covid-19.

“Currently, 101 infected patients have been hospitalised, 15 of whom are in ICU. This means 1.6% of all those infected have required intensive care,” Makhura said.

It came to light during the briefing that Tshwane, as of yesterday, recorded the third highest coronavirus infections in the province, with 104 cases, lagging behind Johannesburg with 558 and Ekurhuleni at 161. The total number of cases in the province stands at 969.

Makhura said the province’s Covid19 response plan was based on five pillars, which were comprehensive health response, food security response, enforcement and compliance measures, economic response and social mobilisation and social solidarity.

While Health MEC Dr Bandile Masuku this week announced the Nasrec Centre has been turned into a standby quarantine facility in Johannesburg, Makhura yesterday revealed the City of Tshwane is also gearing up for a war against the coronavirus.

Three of the capital’s hospitals have been identified for admission of Covid19 patients in need of intensive medical care.

The hospitals – Kopanong in Atteridgeville, Jubilee in Hammanskraal and Dr George Mukhari in Ga-Rankuwa – will soon have permanent wards to increase capacity. One of the hospitals to also receive extra wards would be Chris Hani Baragwanath in Soweto.

“This intervention will help speed-up our existing plans to increase capacity in these facilities using alternative building technology,” he said.

This week, Makhura said Tshwane District Hospital was also among existing hospitals that have been cleared of patients and also declared Covid-19 facilities.

On Tuesday, Makhura further visited a food bank in Silverton, where he expressed worry that it was likely to run out of food in a week.

He announced yesterday that the five food banks in the metros and districts have food that would only last for two weeks, while the province provided food relief to more than 200000 households per annum as part of its food security programme.

Makhura said food parcels would not be given to everybody, but to those current food insecure households, who were verified and confirmed by social workers, the homeless, the sickly, childheaded households and victims of gender-based violence

Regarding the enforcement of the lockdown rules, he said there were at least 10026suspects arrested for breaking the regulations.

Out of that number 9 624 cases were opened and 7481 suspects would soon appear in court.