“Before Covid-19 we used to take the family of the deceased to the room for them to pay their last respects before the body was taken away by an undertaker, but we have stopped doing that now. The room is always full of bodies.”
Van der Heever said different interventions were considered to minimise infections, including getting staff “to work remotely where possible”.
Leah Andrews*, a registered nurse at a Cape Town tertiary hospital said testing was offered to staff only if they showed symptoms. Despite many of her colleagues testing positive and going on quarantine, Simon said there was no additional staff. “If we are struggling to man the current beds due to staff shortages how on earth are we going to cope with the peak?”
Western Cape health care workers say PPE remains a challenge despite the increasing number of Covid-19 infections among them.Eleanor Roberts, chairperson of nursing union Denosa in the Western Cape, said that despite nurses putting their lives at risk they were “sadly not compensated for their sacrifice”.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
We are already overwhelmed by Covid-19: WC health care workersBodies are piling up in a small room that doubles as a makeshift mortuary in one of Cape Town’s district hospitals said an emergency nurse working there.
Read more »
COVID-19 fund: UIF shocked at big companies not paying workersThe UIF has paid R21-billion to 3,6 million workers since April for the COVID-19 TERS relief payment.
Read more »
Uitenhage stylist uses his hair to protest against Covid-19 lockdownKwaNobuhle hairdresser Onele Cembi has found a way to register a protest against lockdown conditions: writing his protest in his hair.
Read more »
South Africa's Covid-19 cases now at 73 533, with another 88 deaths reportedSouth Africa's confirmed Covid-19 cases have increased by 3495 to 73 533 with a further 88 reported over the past 24 hours, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said on Monday.
Read more »
Auditors appointed after companies 'fail to pay' workers Covid-19 relief fundsEmployment & labour minister Thulas Nxesi has appointed auditors to follow the trail of money paid to companies since the start of the lockdown after it emerged that some had allegedly failed to pay employees.
Read more »