Probe into EL hospital racism row

Senior managers at Frere Hospital face a probe over allegations of racism levelled against them by junior staffers.

The Eastern Cape legislature portfolio committee on health has instructed the health department to institute an investigation after the juniors complained to their respective unions about racism at the hospital.

The Daily Dispatch has learned that allegations of preferential treatment in filling posts favouring Frere over Cecilia Makiwane Hospital (CMH) in Mdantsane will form part of the investigation.

Today the department is to be grilled on the progress of its own investigations at the provincial legislature.

Chairman of the portfolio committee on health Mxolisi Dimaza confirmed both investigations yesterday.

“It is correct... it was that racism is taking place at Frere. We raised the matter in a special meeting with the department and we indicated that such allegations must be investigated because anything to do with racism is quite serious. There was also an allegation that preferential treatment is given to Frere.”

Dimaza said department officials did not deny allegations of preferential treatment.

Officials were asked to provide details on the filling of posts at the two hospitals.

He said information provided by the department stated that since 2012 only 102 vacancies were filled at CMH, while during the same period 863 vacancies were filled at Frere.

This was despite the fact that CMH served a larger community, which includes Mdantsane – the second biggest township in the country after Soweto – Needs Camp and other surrounding areas.

“CMH is much bigger than Frere and should be treated like the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Johannesburg because Mdantsane is township.

“The problem is that Persal is controlled by Frere despite the fact that the government of the day took a decision to de-complex these hospitals,” Dimaza said.

In 2011, the provincial government decided to separate Frere and CMH, which had formed the East London Hospital Complex, for the hospitals to be run independently by their own chief executive officers (CEOs).

The “de-complexing” processes followed a spate of baby deaths at the two facilities.

Dimaza said there seemed to be traction in the allegations that there was preferential treatment in the filling of posts after a doctor, who used to do temporary work at CMH, could not be hired there but was later hired at Frere.

He said the health department’s human resources (HR) unit, allegedly told CMH that the doctor was not in the database.

The committee intervened.

“We took a stance on the spot to say that particular doctor must report to CMH. The HR of the department denied that it was them,” he said.

The chairman said unions revealed some of the alleged racism had to do with labour disputes, appointments and ill treatment of junior staffers at the hands of certain seniors.

The labour unions raised the allegations during the committee’s visit at Frere and CMH.

National Education, Health and Allied Worker’s Union provincial secretary Miki Jaceni confirmed this yesterday.

“We have a firm view that an independent commission should investigate these allegations.”

Democratic Nurses’ Organisation of South Africa acting provincial secretary Khaya Sodidi also confirmed it, saying: “There are racial tensions at Frere. Some of allegations date back three to four years but have come to the fore now that our members have lost confidence in management,” Sodidi said.

Attempts were made to get a comment from the department spokesman Siyanda Manana, Frere CEO Dr Rolene Wagner and CMH CEO Dr Mthandeki Xamlashe, but a response had not been received at the time of writing.