NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
FOR WRITTEN REPLY
QUESTION NO. 3183
DATE OF PUBLICATION IN INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER: 15 NOVEMBER 2013
(INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER NO. 38)
Ms D Kohler-Barnard (DA) to ask the Minister of Health:
(1) (a) How many government laboratories process toxicology samples and
(b) where is each laboratory located;
(2) what was the total backlog of (a) toxicology samples and (b) samples
relating to (i) homicide, (ii) rape and sexual assault and (iii) drunk
driving at these laboratories (aa) in the (aaa) 2010-11, (bbb) 2011-12
and (ccc) 2012-13 financial years and (bb) from 1 April 2013 up to the
latest specified date for which information is available;
(3) on average (a) how many samples have been received in each month and
(b) what is the turnaround time for processing samples;
(4) (a) what is the total number of (i) vacancies and (ii) temporary
appointments at the laboratories and (b) how long has each (i) vacant
and (ii) temporary position remained unfilled?
NW3741E
REPLY:
1) (a) Three Forensic Chemistry Laboratories (FCLs).
(b) Cape Town (120 Albert Road, Woodstock), Johannesburg (110
Joubert Street, Constitutional Hill, Braamfontein), Pretoria
(271 Visagie Street, Burgers Park).
2) (a) Table 1 below indicates the number of unprocessed Toxicology
samples.
Table 1: Toxicology unprocessed samples by FCL as at 31 October
2013
|Forensic Chemistry Laboratory |Total Unprocessed |
|Cape Town FCL |3667 |
|Johannesburg FCL |7431 |
|Pretoria FCL |5919 |
(b) (i) Terms such as âhomicideâ are not included in the request
for analysis.
(ii) Terms such as ârape and sexual assaultâ are not included
in the request for analysis and the Forensic Chemistry
Laboratories do not perform DNA analysis.
(iii) (aaa) Blood Alcohol Drunken Driving(DD)and Blood Alcohol
Postmortem(PM) 2010-11
Cape Town FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 7161 and has been
cleared.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 652 and has been
cleared.
Johannesburg FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 9179 and has been
cleared.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 6656 and has been
cleared.
Pretoria FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 6518 and has been
cleared.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 3148 and has been
cleared.
(bbb) Blood Alcohol Drunken Driving (DD) and Blood Alcohol
Postmortem (PM) 2011-12
Cape Town FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 15963 and has been
cleared.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 1689 and has been
cleared.
Johannesburg FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 29169 and has been
cleared.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 795 and has been
cleared.
Pretoria FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 10915 and has been
cleared.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 494 and has been
cleared.
(ccc) Blood Alcohol Drunken Driving (DD) and Blood Alcohol
Postmortem (PM) 2012-13
Cape Town FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 20856 and 15361 was
cleared and 5945 is outstanding.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 186 and has been
cleared.
Johannesburg FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 23807 and has been
cleared.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 597 and has been
cleared.
Pretoria FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 10790 and has been
cleared.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 367 and has been
cleared.
(b) (bb) Blood Alcohol Drunken Driving (DD) and Blood Alcohol
Postmortem (PM) April 2013 to October 2013 (as at 31
October 2013)
Cape Town FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 26307 and 12408 samples
have been cleared in this period.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 4635 and 1403 samples
have been cleared in this period.
Johannesburg FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 24551 and 14690 samples
have been cleared in this period.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 3941 and 3920 samples
have been cleared this period.
Pretoria FCL
The Blood Alcohol (DD) backlog was 12889 samples and 7959
samples were cleared in this period.
The Blood Alcohol (PM) backlog was 1321 samples and 3028
samples were cleared in this period.
3) Monthly averages of blood samples received are as follows:
Cape Town Laboratory
Toxicology: 61 per month
Blood alcohol (Post Mortem): 691 per month
Blood alcohol (Drunken Driving: 2Â 000 per month
Johannesburg Laboratory
Toxicology: 116 per month
Blood alcohol (Post Mortem): 514 per month
Blood alcohol (Drunken Driving: 1 700 per month
Pretoria Laboratory
Toxicology: 137 per month
Blood alcohol (Post Mortem): 481 per month
Blood alcohol (Drunken Driving: 1 600 per month
(3) (b) Please note that in all the FCLâs analysts are working on both
old as well as new incoming cases in order to prevent the newer
cases from getting old as well. Analysts have been assigned into
groups. Turnaround times are determined based on the current
number of samples and are indicated below.
|Average Turnaround Time |Cape Town |Johannesburg |Pretoria |
|Toxicology: from |4 weeks for 15 |4 weeks for 15 |4 weeks for 15 |
|allocation to analyst |cases per |cases per |cases per |
| |analyst |analyst |analyst |
|Drunk Driving: from |5 days per |5 days per batch|5 days per |
|allocation to analyst |batch of 200 |of 200 per |batch of 200 |
| |per analyst |analyst |per analyst |
|Drunk Driving: estimated |12,4 months |13,5 months |7,6 months |
|time to process all | | | |
|currently unprocessed | | | |
|samples at current output | | | |
|rate | | | |
4) (a) (i) We have two vacancies for the Laboratory
Information Management System (LIMS) administrator. The
Johannesburg FCL LIMS administrator candidate has been
recommended, in the process of finalisation after
interviews. For the LIMS administrator for Cape Town there
was no suitable candidate and will be re-advertised.
(ii) No temporary employees are appointed at any of the FCLs.
(b) (i) The LIMS administrator posts are new posts in the Forensic
Chemistry Laboratories.
(ii) No temporary employees are appointed at any of the FCLs and we
do not have vacancies for temporary positions.
These backlogs occurred over a long period of time. To finally deal
with them the Department recruited 70 Chemistry and Biochemistry
graduates and hired them as interns. They were sent for training in
toxicology analysis at the University of Pretoria. They have completed
training and all 70 of them have been hired on a full-time basis. They
have helped a lot to clear these backlogs.
END.