Speaker, the province of KwaZulu-Natal currently has 15 660 vacant posts in its provincial health care system, of which 11 829 are for critical staff members such as doctors and pharmacists.
The system is on the verge of collapse and there seems to be no immediate solution in sight. Surely 25 doctors for every 100 000 people is clearly unworkable and the KwaZulu-Natal health care system is in a de facto state of crisis.
The IFP urges the Minister to prioritise this matter as the lives of our ailing citizens are placed at a greater risk without an adequately functioning medical system. I thank you.