Audit of Residential Facilities, Final report - Division for Social Policy ...

66% nursing assistants = 9 (50% can be replaced with care givers)It was quite alarming therefore, that in at least 21% of homes they never had access to a nurse,with some provinces much higher such as Eastern Cape (49%), Free State (33%) and NorthWest Province (65%). This means that these homes probably rely on nursing assistants andcaregivers.Public hospital services:In the majority of homes the residents had to access medical services such as a doctor,medicines, a physiotherapist and occupational therapist at their nearest hospital. While in 81% ofhomes there was a hospital available within a 1-10km radius, in some provinces the hospitalswere more than 50km away from the home. In the Free State out of 33 homes, 11 were morethan 50km away from the home making access to medical care very difficult. The lack oftransport was a problem in many of the homes so in the case where homes did not haveappropriate transport for the residents, they relied on family members who were easy to access,or on an ambulance from the Department of Health that was very unreliable. In almost all thehomes they indicated that even where an ambulance fetched the resident, they would not returnthen to the home when they were discharged.Information received from all respondents across the provinces, there were numerous complaintsreceived by older persons who are forced to use the services of government hospitals. They arereportedly not treated with dignity and respect; have to wait for many hours to be assisted. Manycomplained that they waited long hours and often returned from a full day at the hospital withouthaving been attended to by a doctor, or receiving medication.In the SA Policy for Older Persons it notes that “…A Ministerial Committee was appointed in2000 to investigate the neglect, ill-treatment and abuse of older persons. It found services for theelderly in hospitals and clinics to be less than adequate and heard many complaints about theattitude of staff to older patients, the shortage of medicines and assistive devices, the lack oftransport and long out-patient waiting times…”It is therefore very concerning that since 2000 the situation for older persons using the publichealth system remains the same and in some cases might have worsened. Since this provisionof frail care for those in need of twenty-four hour care is official policy the division of responsibilitybetween Social Development and Health Departments needs to be clarified. The Policy states34 | D S D A u d i t o f R e s i d e n t i a l F a c i l i t i e s