NCOP
FOR WRITTEN REPLY
QUESTION NO. 449
DATE OF PUBLICATION IN INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER: 24 August 2012
(INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER NO. 23)
Mr M J R de Villiers (DA-WC) to ask the Minister of Health:
(a) What are the norms and standards in respect of equipment for (i)
provincial and (ii) district hospitals, (b) which (i) provincial and (ii)
district hospitals do not meet these norms and standards in each province
and (c) what (i) plans are in place to address hospitals which are not
meeting the norms and standards and (ii) time frames are set in this
regard?
CW554E
REPLY:
a) The National Core Standards which cover all types of health
establishments specify that medical equipment for safe and effective
patient care is available and functional, that staff is trained in the
correct use of this equipment, and that medical devices are maintained
to ensure safety and functionality. In order to further develop these
core standards, essential equipment lists for different levels of
facility, including provincial and district hospitals, have now been
approved by the National Health Council together with detailed norms
and standards for clinical engineering staffing and infrastructure for
repair and maintenance of equipment.
b) The recently conducted baseline audit covered a limited list of
equipment as the detailed work covered in (a) was completed after the
start of the audit; validated results of the audit will be available
in the near future. The new requirements will be assessed in future
audits.
c) Improvement plans are already being developed to close gaps identified
by the baseline audit, however the time-frames will vary by facility
and in accordance with the nature of the problem.
END.