The health and service union (Hospersa) believes Pres. Cyril Ramaphosa “does not see the crisis in the country’s healthcare system”.
In a statement, the union expressed its disappointment over the lack of focus on the beleaguered healthcare industry during Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation speech on Thursday night.
Hospersa spokesperson Kevin Halama said the union was disappointed that Ramaphosa did not mention any plans at all to tackle poor infrastructure, maladministration, lack of state facilities and the violent attacks on health care workers.
Hospersa also “warns the president not to make it appear that the country’s state health care is in good condition while deteriorating year after year because it is not addressed”.
“During his speech, Ramaphosa failed to reassure the general public about the state of health care and to intervene to tackle the crisis. In a nearly two-hour speech, he provided feedback on the National Health Insurance (NHI) in only three sentences. The state speech did not capture the imagination of healthcare professionals who work long hours every day to serve communities without any government support, ”Halama said.
“Hospersa believes that the president does not see the crisis in the country’s state healthcare system.”
