Butterworth hospital in crisis

The Butterworth Hospital is so cash-strapped that halfway through its financial year, only 4% of its R19.6m annual budget is now in its coffers.

As a result, service providers who are responsible for feeding thousands of patients who come through the 240-bed hospital every month, have not been paid.

The crisis was uncovered when members of the health portfolio committee conducted an oversight visit last month. Committee member, MPL Charles Cowley, who was part of the delegation, said they were told that the hospital had almost spent its annual goods and services budget “and is now facing the real possibility of not being able to feed patients”, said Cowley.

When management was grilled on why they allowed the situation to degenerate to such an extent, halfway through the financial year, Cowley said they had not provided convincing answers.

“There was no clarity provided on why the situation was allowed to degenerate to such a precarious state in just six months,” said Cowley.

The Dispatch understands that the hospital has since asked for a R3m top-up.

This request was confirmed by a senior health official.

However, health department spokesperson Lwandile Sicwetsha down-played the crisis, saying that health facilities did at times fall short of their budgets, and that the department then assisted them to ensure that their services were not interrupted.

Asked if Butterworth Hospital was in a financial fix, Sicwetsha replied: “No. The head office can confirm that budgets are reassigned to ensure continuity of services.

“When hospitals exhaust their budgets, the accounting head re-allocates budget to that hospital or facility.”

Cowley said he had sent questions to health MEC Helen Saul’s-August to establish the financial status of other hospitals in the province.

“The health department, upon seeing spending patterns of the hospital at the end of the first quarter, should immediately have taken steps to mitigate the situation,” he said.