24 Aug 2015

Village Extension Teams (VETs) and Village Health Committees (VHCs) can be utilised to bridge the communication gap between the communities and hospitals.

Speaking during a consultation meeting with residents recently, principal nursing officer, Ms Florence Brown said revival of VHCs and VETs was necessary to ease monitoring of patients by nurses, and to break communication barrier between communities and hospitals.

Ms Brown said residents decried poor dissemination of information and consultations between them and hospitals.

As such, she said they believe VHCs and VETs could bridge the differences between the two parties.

“Not only patients will benefit, but the community at large because their worries and suggestions will be carried through these programmes.” 

Responding to some concerns about the high rising number of patients from Hukuntsi who were referred to Princess Marina hospital, Ms Brown said the discharged patients were mostly referred for check-ups, and it was the responsibility of families to ensure that they escort their patients to Princess Marina hospital. For those who were registered destitute she said, they should be taken care of by social and community development office.

In-patients, she said, were the only ones that could be transported if referred, because they were still under the hospital care.

Ms Brown further said patients carried by aircraft were those that their situation was of extreme emergency and needed to be attended immediately.

She also encouraged the residents to return to the old spirit of self-reliance and meet government halfway.

For their part, the residents decried lack of blankets in the hospital saying that Kgalagadi is extremely cold especially in winter. 

They also expressed concern about the time taken to inform the family members when their patients had passed on. ENDS