Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Joy as field hospital shuts doors
THE closure of the the Hospital of Hope field hospital at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) has been hailed as as a positive sign in the fight against Covid-19.
Yesterday Premier Alan Winde was joined by senior members of the Western Cape Health Department to officially decommission the field hospital, set up at the CTICC on June 5.
The Hospital of Hope treated 1502 patients – 95% of them were discharged and 82 people died at the facility.
Speaking to nurses and healthcare workers at the facility, Winde said: “We saw what was happening in New York and Italy, there were insufficient beds. I said what we are not going to have is people with their loved ones sitting in the parking lots of our hospitals waiting for a bed because the passageways are full and every single ward is full.”
Facility manager Theodore Abrahams thanked the staff for their dedication to caring for every patient admitted.
“One of the stories that I think was particularly remarkable was three people, at the ages of 104, 93 and 88 respectively, Covid-infected, that were admitted to the hospital, that we managed to discharge safely and returned to their homes.”
The staff ushered Winde and senior managers into the former hospital wards with song and dance and to the last remaining bed at the facility.
Symbolically, bed number 862 was the last in the hospital and the honour went to Winde to wheel it out to officially close the temporary hospital.
Nurse Kennedy Efugenum, one of the operational managers, said: “From the moment that the facility closed we felt like we’re losing part of our hands, our patients are gone and we continue to hope they are safe wherever they are.”
Nurse Saadiqah McQuire-Canan said working at the Hospital of Hope was challenging.“It was stressful at the beginning because of all the unknowns, but the infection control policies that were in place were of the highest standard and that’s why we conquered.”
The Brackengate facility in Brackenfell will now assume the title of Hospital of Hope. Winde said he would suggest a wall of remembrance to CTICC management on which all of the nursing staff’s names will be listed.