19 Feb 2026

Visiting Sir Ketumile Masire Teaching Hospital (SKMTH) is quite an astounding experience that keeps those who have been there feeling like the medical hotel where all represent perfect health that cannot be thwarted by any kind of illness and disease is housed.

SKMTH seemingly is not a place for the sick, neither odour of disinfectant, nor the aroma of paint existed, leaving the air fresh and welcoming for the healthy visitor and the patient who is visiting the specialist.

The clean air relaxes all who come through SKMTH. Here there is no fear of infection as the beep of the machines are the only stimulant to the ear and the eye sees nothing scary, but hope that swells with the vastness of the cubicles.

Patients on dialysis are on their phones and it is a normal day for them as kidney nursing specialist, Mr Othusitse Chaka talks about the Dialysis Unit that accommodates patients either at acute stage or chronic acute who may recover depending on their response to medication and abide by the doctor’s instructions.

Mr Chaka understands dialysis procedure like the back of his hand, he is after all his area of speaciality.

 “As we keep dialysing the patient, one is likely to respond to our treatment and we start to reduce our dialysis time, their dialysis frequency. It is entirely dependent on the response of the patient’s body towards the medication or the session we are giving them,” he simplified.

He passionately explains the unit divisions such as the Procedure Room, the Isolation Unit and space for patients with any other condition besides the ones easily transmitted such as Hepatitis B who are isolated from patients with flu and other illnesses.

The Surgical Ward directed by Ms Bonno Joubert, is as immaculate the Dialysis Unit; the beds are made, unoccupied still because SKMTH is a referral facility that has recently extended its services to alleviate congestion that has been an eye sore at Princess Marina Hospital.

The mega Surgical Ward consisting of eight single rooms and six bedded cubicles, altogether making it a 58 bedded and two high care cubicles each comprising four beds which made eight high care beds.

Ms Joubert knowing her space like she was born for it, said the Surgical Ward offered overnight accommodation to patients on referral from Princess Marina prior and after their surgery. Still in the Surgical Ward, in a state that could make a patient comfortable in contradiction of their ill-health is the hotel resembling private en-suite rooms.

The theatre, where surgeries take place, is a no go area for visitors and the hospital staff who are not part of the surgical team.

Theatre is for hygienically pure individuals with the recommended clothing and entrants stay locked in from beginning to the end of an operation.

Transitioning from Princess Marina Hospital which had 70 patients awaiting operations, two were undergoing surgery and visitors, myself included, had to remain outside the door while curiosity stirred through the thick walls.

Ms Kebabonye Samu, wearing a threatre hat and Central Sterilising Services Department Unit manager, stood at the door to explain the state of affairs from where she stood; rank and objectives. Ms Samu narrated that they were operating on trauma care orthopaedics, patients who had fractured bones.

Already, 17 patients have been assisted since SKMTH was opened to the public. The hospital is relatively new, equipment is high end and the staff is agile.

Yet from time to time one catches sight of a patient transported on a stretcher, visibly battling some ailment.

Going through the SKMTH maze of corridors and the winding ramp, confidence on the guidance of the hospital executives saves the day as mere visitors may not be able to tell East from West when not using the fully functional, smooth running elevator.

The meanderings and the countless turns did not deter the tour that led to the Laboratory Unit sitting on the second floor where the helipad is clearly visible across the window, the Laboratory manager, Mr Thuso Senosi, on is standby to show off his multifunctional machines that test several body fluids and blood components.

Passionate about the laboratory, Mr Senosi uncovers his new apparatuses and proudly talks about the protocols in the laboratory and narrates on the dermatology tests pertaining to cells and other components of blood to diagnose sicknesses such as anaemia and leukaemia.

On his turf, words relentlessly flow and speaks of human chemistry in terms of sugar, proteins, salts adding that they mature, they are going to test for other markers in the blood such as those of cancer. In another huge room, he flaunts the blood bank where he explains that they still did things manually, how the Blood Donations unit runs, blood grouping automation, the dealings with the National Blood Transfusion and acquisition from South Africa where the national blood bank is not sufficient.

SKMTH boasts of COBAS6800 a machine that runs several functions such as testing body Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), a test for identifying genetics (DNA or RNA) and is automated to combine three pieces of equipment in one making it possible to cover a lot of tests in one run.

He guessed that there could be two of three of such machines.

Following the public outcry due to shortage of medications in public facilities, it was heart-warming to meet Mr Tshepo Kgabontle at the Pharmacy, who assured that the situation was “improving day by day, though, there are some that we do not have,” he said.

“But I believe in the next week or two, they will be able to get assistance. So, the numbers are increasing but I think we are seeing 250 to 300 patients per day. The thing is, as the medication comes from CMS, we make sure that we capture them in the system. That process sometimes we do recede it and then it will not be ready to dispense immediately. So we encourage them that they can check at a later stage but, the situation has improved,” he clarified.

Meanwhile, in the Dispensary waiting room, the mood is sombre. No one is talking and the patients seem highly patient with the hope to get their medication.

Mr Kgabontle explains that the patient numbers have drastically increased since the number of clinics have been redeployed from Princess Marina Hospital to SKMTH and patients from other clinics outside SKMTH who could not find service where they were.

Prior to opening for services at SKMTH, he states that they used to attend to 50 or less patients daily which meant a 200 per cent increase giving about 60 per cent of the medication. The visit took to the Accident and Emergency Unit where two Doctors waited to address issues around the unit, aura of professionalism hovering over them like those encountered before. Another stop was the Medical Oncology, a place that everyone dreads. There the team was met by Ms Kuhle Fulu, a medical physicist, who also gave a full lesson of what their day to day work entailed. Exhausted as they were, the visitors appreciated the state of the art hospital and how it would improve service delivery now that it had opened its doors to the public. ENDS