Hotel tries to send guest with symptoms of virus packing

A WOMAN showing Covid-19 symptoms is fighting being kicked out of a Sandton hotel without proper health care.

Concept designer Nana Mnguni, a guest at Enigma Hotel Apartments has been allegedly mistreated by staff members after alerting them of her symptoms.

Mnguni checked in at the hotel on July 1, hoping to only stay a week before moving to Durban for work purposes and reconnect with her family.

“I am in the process of relocating provinces. So I thought staying here until finalisation of my travel arrangements and other things would make sense,” she said.

Mnguni told The Star that her first few days at the hotel were fine until she started showing Covid-19 symptoms on Monday last week. She alleges that the hotel ordered her to leave due to her health condition.

Mnguni said that getting medical attention and a Covid-19 test had been an uphill battle.

“The hotel has not been helpful. I have been blowing blood clots from my nose, I have a sore throat, I am nauseous and getting medical attention is just not easy. The nearest pharmacies are out of testing kits and the same goes for testing labs,” she said.

The hotel group failed to respond to a query from The Star last week.

The guest questioned the hotel’s integrity and transparency in fighting the pandemic. “The hotel is trying to cover this up. They know all the admin that they should go through if I’m found positive. I have been in contact with a few people here before I got this sick and they are just being irresponsible,” she said.

Federated Hospitality Association of South Africa chief executive Lee Zama said the hotel cannot be held liable if they were not earmarked as a Covid-19 isolation site.

“It’s a difficult one, because the guest has not tested yet.

“But we have to note that there are some hotels with isolation sites and others do not have that. At the end of the day we are in the hospitality industry and we are not health experts,” she said.

When the country entered lockdown level 3, Tourism Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane announced that accommodation services can be allowed except for leisure and establishment.

Kubayi-Ngubane explained that the tourism sector should be at the forefront of deploying solutions focused on safety, sanitising methods and early detection.

Department spokesperson Blessing Manale said the hotel should quarantine the guest depending on their contract.

“When a guest checks in, there is a period contract on how long the guest will stay. If that stay is still active the guest can be quarantined at the establishment. “No one should be subjected to bad treatment. If the guest feels that she has not received adequate treatment from the hotel, she is more than welcomed to lodge a complaint with the tourism complaints officer,” he said.

National Health Department spokesperson Popo Maja said the guest could be driven to a nearest medical facility on condition that health guidelines were adhered to.