Two nurses from East London’s Frere Hospital will be reported to the South African Nursing Council after allegedly giving a blood transfusion to the wrong patient.
The provincial department of health is cracking down on negligent behaviour following two other incidents in other parts of the province that led to fatalities.
Health spokesman Sizwe Kupelo said the nurses would face an internal disciplinary hearing, looking at their alleged negligence.
“There was a patient who was due for a blood transfusion, and the nurses gave the blood to the wrong patient,” Kupelo said.
“Fortunately the patient who got the blood was of the same blood group as the donated blood, so there was no harm.”
He said doctors were responsible for examining and prescribing treatment to patients, and nurses were responsible for administering the treatment.
He said this specific case was not reported by the patient as they had not suffered any harm but the department, through vigilance, had come across the case. “We are taking a stand against healthcare workers who do this.”
Last month, it was reported how two patients from Nompumelelo Hospital in Peddie died minutes after they were both allegedly injected with the wrong medicine.
The patients had come to hospital for stomach cramps and vomiting, one in February, the other in March.
A similar incident took place in a Port Elizabeth hospital where a nurse was suspended for allegedly injecting patients with the wrong medicine.
“There’s no justification for negligence. We are going to take decisive action against everyone, depending on the merit of each case.
“That’s why we are taking action against these two individuals, including the Peddie one,” said Kupelo.
In the past he has lamented how cases of negligence were costing the department a lot of money and healthcare professionals were going unpunished for their mistakes.
Kupelo has also questioned the authenticity of cases in which lawyers persuaded patients to sue the department.
He said the investigation regarding the Peddie matter was ongoing and some headway had been made, but did not want to say more as this would jeopardise the investigation.
“We acknowledge the workload and the challenges they face, but that’s not an excuse for nurses to behave in a manner that puts the lives of people at risk,” said Kupelo. — vuyiswav@dispatch.co.za
Blood given to wrong patient
The provincial department of health is cracking down on negligent behaviour following two other incidents in other parts of the province that led to fatalities.
Health spokesman Sizwe Kupelo said the nurses would face an internal disciplinary hearing, looking at their alleged negligence.
“There was a patient who was due for a blood transfusion, and the nurses gave the blood to the wrong patient,” Kupelo said.
“Fortunately the patient who got the blood was of the same blood group as the donated blood, so there was no harm.”
He said doctors were responsible for examining and prescribing treatment to patients, and nurses were responsible for administering the treatment.
He said this specific case was not reported by the patient as they had not suffered any harm but the department, through vigilance, had come across the case. “We are taking a stand against healthcare workers who do this.”
Last month, it was reported how two patients from Nompumelelo Hospital in Peddie died minutes after they were both allegedly injected with the wrong medicine.
The patients had come to hospital for stomach cramps and vomiting, one in February, the other in March.
A similar incident took place in a Port Elizabeth hospital where a nurse was suspended for allegedly injecting patients with the wrong medicine.
“There’s no justification for negligence. We are going to take decisive action against everyone, depending on the merit of each case.
“That’s why we are taking action against these two individuals, including the Peddie one,” said Kupelo.
In the past he has lamented how cases of negligence were costing the department a lot of money and healthcare professionals were going unpunished for their mistakes.
Kupelo has also questioned the authenticity of cases in which lawyers persuaded patients to sue the department.
He said the investigation regarding the Peddie matter was ongoing and some headway had been made, but did not want to say more as this would jeopardise the investigation.
“We acknowledge the workload and the challenges they face, but that’s not an excuse for nurses to behave in a manner that puts the lives of people at risk,” said Kupelo. — vuyiswav@dispatch.co.za
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