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Petition is successful with 164 signatures
To: Acting Operational Manager, Sister Alice Kunene
[VICTORY] Calling on Bez valley Clinic to take action against patient discrimination!
Our demands were met.
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* [Campaign Update]: It has been over 4 months since we launched a campaign fighting for proper service delivery and the rights of undocumented immigrants at the Bez Valley clinic.
There have been some positive developments on the issue. We found out that there is a new Clinic manager, and she advised that she is aware of the issues that were tabled in our campaign (turning away patients who come after 11 AM, turning away undocumented migrants, the ill-treatment of patients, and the lack of patient dignity). She also stated that she and her team(clinic committee) have been working hard to address all these issues. We will keep an eye on the ground for further developments.
We demand that the Operational Manager of Bez valley clinic put an end to the toxic and unprofessional behaviour by the staff at the Bez valley clinic. We need immediate action in the following ways:
·Investigate reports of patient neglect and discrimination against foreign national patients.
.The clinic needs to provide urgent training to all the staff on the healthcare rights of the general public especially foreign nationals
Why is this important?
For years, there have been reports by community members that the staff at the Bez valley clinic have been abusing their powers as healthcare professionals. They have been engaging in unacceptable and criminal behaviour of medical xenophobia. This issue of medical xenophobia is pressing and very problematic. Most undocumented foreign national patients have reported on various platforms that they have been denied their rights to healthcare and are often subjected to xenophobic comments from the staff. As the community we need to make sure that this message is very loud and clear; what is happening at our clinic is against the law. Undocumented individuals have the right to access various healthcare services, these include free access to contraception, HIV/Aids treatment and other basic needs; when it comes to hospital treatment and emergency healthcare these have to be paid for [1]. The criminal behaviour of turning away pregnant undocumented foreign nationals needs to be thoroughly investigated. The laws in South African are very clear and the clinic needs to abide by these laws.
Numerous reports have also surfaced on social media platforms where community members have documented how the staff is rude to patients and fail to provide service delivery. The clinic has been documented, repeatedly closing earlier than the scheduled hours; the gates remain open however when you get to the security or the admin section; you will be told that no patient will be assisted after 11 AM. This has also been placing an extreme strain on other clinics around Bez valley, patients end up going to Bedfordview clinic, Hillbrow clinic and Jeppe clinic.
On the Facebook group called “The Bez valley Community”; multiple users have submitted posts and videos of evidence where they are being discriminated upon. When these videos are posted they amount massive views and comments from the community members, where different users document their ill experiences at the clinic.
In one video, a user called S. Tshuma provides evidence where one of the nurses has instructed the staff not to attend to anyone that comes after 11am. The mother seen in this video is in distress because her child needs emergency assistance, but she had to be turned away because according to the clinic one cannot have an emergency after 11 AM [2].
In one video, a user called S. Tshuma provides evidence where one of the nurses has instructed the staff not to attend to anyone that comes after 11am. The mother seen in this video is in distress because her child needs emergency assistance, but she had to be turned away because according to the clinic one cannot have an emergency after 11 AM [2].
On the 17th of October 2023, there was another post by L. Tlhageng, where he asked community members to detail their experiences at the clinic. Going through the comment section, it was evident that the majority of the community were expressing the dissatisfaction with the clinic and the main issues was medical xenophobia and the utter disrespect and disregard of their basic healthcare rights. In another video; one of the nurses can be seen shouting abuse at patients that were in the waiting area and telling them that she doesn’t care even if they take the video.
What is happening at our beloved Bez valley clinic is against the law. The Constitution states that all people in South Africa, regardless of status or nationality, have the right to have access to health care services, and that ‘no one’ may be refused emergency medical treatment [4].
As a community member you have the power to stop these xenophobic and discriminatory acts! We need to act now! We need to rise, come together and stand up for our rights and make sure that the Bez valley Clinic Manager takes proper urgent decisive action.
References:
References:
[1] Migrants & Refugees: Health access; www.scalabrini.co.za.
[2] S. Tshuma, https://www.facebook.com/reel/645461107742183
[4] Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996.
By: Nomzamo Ngcobo
By: Nomzamo Ngcobo