Hon Chairperson, Ministers, Deputy Ministers and Members of Parliament, may we all unite and speak with one voice in passing this Bill. An independent office of health standards is something we should have done yesterday. Health and safety has no colour, race, sex or creed. It affects all of us directly or indirectly. When you are sick and ill, you are vulnerable; you have no choice but to go to the nearest centre so that somebody can look after your health and safety. After the passing of this Bill, health services and the perception of the Department of Health in South Africa will never be the same. I've been admitted to hospital with a dislocated shoulder but I came out of the hospital with a chest infection. This was a direct result of the cleanliness of the institution. I am sure I'm not the only one who has experienced this. I've been attended to at a hospital only to be told that there were no doctors to examine me and make a diagnosis. To my mind, the definition of a hospital is not only about the walls of the institution but the human resources and the equipment that make a hospital. Hence I say that the health and safety in our institutions are not up to standard.
I've been to a hospital or a clinic only to be told that there were no drugs or, if there were drugs that could cure my ailment, that they didn't have them in stock and they could give me a substitute. A substitute can never be as good as the original drug that was meant to be used for a particular disease. A substitute is not the real thing.
I've been told in health institutions that the machine that would confirm my diagnosis was broken, so I had to go back later to make sure that they made a diagnosis. When you are told this, one wonders whether the disease will wait until you get a proper diagnosis.
Some of these scenarios are familiar to those of us sitting in this House. We have experienced some of these things. There can be only one reason - that there have been no norms and standards in our institutions. It has always been a free-for-all. This is why I urge you to unite and pass this piece of legislation.
The amendment is about considering the health and safety of the vulnerable users of our health institutions. It will be managed by the chief executive officer but the main person who will monitor, investigate, receive complaints and act on this in an impartial, humble, independent and honest way is the ombudsperson. This is the main person who will change the perception of the health services in South Africa forever.
Although this office will advise the Minister, it is totally independent. Money is appropriated by Parliament to this office, in addition to the money it charges. There is a board that makes policy and is the governing structure. The CEO and the ombudsman will not be appointed without the board's approval.
Another aspect of the Bill is placing the Port Health Services under the national Department of Health, no longer under the provinces. This makes a lot of sense.
One other important area is to make users understand the health service. It is not about preventing death but making sure that we do everything possible. When death occurs, you must know that you did all the things you were supposed to do. In any case, where there is birth, we can be sure there is death. The health department and its services are merely there to prolong the time between birth and death. As the saying goes, "God, grant me the serenity to change and prevent what I can and accept those things that are beyond my capability with present technology."
The main aspect of the Bill is the ombudsperson, the first of its kind in South Africa. As I have said, our health services will never be the same again after passing this Bill.
Let me thank all members of the committee who managed to work so hard, sacrificing their time to make sure that this Bill was ready to come to this House. I want to thank the department for their work and for supporting us, especially the legal directorate. I also thank the Legal Directorate of Parliament for helping us make sure that this piece of legislation was ready to be presented here. I also want to thank the Committee Secretariat and the Research Unit. Health services will never be the same again. Let's all pass this Bill. [Applause.]