Trade union Denosa has slammed a decision by the KwaZulu-Natal government to quarantine all patients diagnosed with COVID-19, saying this won’t work unless more health workers are employed.
Provincial secretary Mandla Shabangu has called on the provincial government to request funds from the national government and deploy more nurses and doctors.
Meanwhile, the provincial government has defended its decision, saying it will assist in preventing more domestic transmisions of the virus.
Premier Sihle Zikalala said that too many COVID-19 patients in the province were failing to adhere to self-isolation instructions given to them and tougher measures needed to be taken to curb the spread of the virus.
“We are moving in a direction where all people who test positive will be placed in isolation in facilities demarcated by government and will only return home when they have shown signs of improvement and are testing negative.”
However, Denosa’s Shabangu said that with 108 health workers already confirmed to have the virus and the highest death rate in the country, the provincial Health Department would not be able to cope.
“We’re in a situation where the health system is about to collapse due to shortages of staff. Can the department now intervene in supporting KZN?”
Meanwhile, provincial authorities said that in an effort to flatten the curve, they would continue to crack down on all those who flouted the regulations of the National Disaster Management Act.