PERSONAL REFLECTION
I have chosen this picture as I feel it best describes South Africa’s health system. You can either go up the stairs or you can go down the stairs which is how I feel South African patients feel when they are experiencing our health system. Going up the stairs and ending up on top represents the strengths of the health system and receiving the correct treatment. Going down the stairs and ending up at the bottom represents the weaknesses of the health system and not receiving the correct treatment or not receiving any treatment at all. The health system has public health services and private health services which both offer great services but one offers a better service than the other.
The strengths of the private services is that they have a variety of equipment and medications for the patients, the waiting times for patients are shorter, there is enough space and beds for patients, the facility is well furnished and also clean and sanitized. Each health professional has their own rooms to accommodate their patients therefore there is no sharing and overcrowding of patients. Private services is a strength of the health system as patients receive better treatment and majority are cured and living a good life therefore they end up on top of the stairs. Weaknesses of private services are that they are very expensive and majority of South Africa population cannot afford it and also cannot afford to pay medical aid. There are not many private facilities either due to the low demand for them. This is a weakness because as much as people need this kind of treatment and service it is way too expensive therefore we move down the stairs to public services and in the end land up at the bottom of the stairs.
The strengths of a public service are that they are free to the community as it is sponsored and paid for by the government. All equipment and medications are provided for by the government, that’s why there is a huge demand for these services. There is day hospitals located in all areas for the community so that they all have access to them. This is a strength as patients will always have access to hospitals at any time without having to worry about costs and in the end still receive treatment even though it’s not the best therefore still land up on top of the stairs. Weaknesses of the public services is that patients wait in long lines and long hours to be served, facilities are not clean and not furnished enough, medical utensils are not sanitized and properly washed, there is overcrowding of patients in rooms and also sharing of rooms between the health professionals and employees do not wash their hands before making contact with their patients. Some patients do not receive the best treatment as the clinic or hospital may not cater for that specific treatment they need or they may not have the financial stability. Some clinics also may not have the right health professional to perform certain treatments and therefore patients are forced to attend a private facility with money they do not have. This is is a weakness because although patients receive treatment they are not comfortable and also some return due to continuously being ill therefore they always land up at the bottom of the stairs.
Patients receive treatments from various health professionals in both public and private services such as doctors, nurses, surgeons, oral hygienist, physiotherapists and occupational therapists. Physiotherapy and rehabilitation is performed better in private health services as they have better equipment and a better facility compared to public services where some share rooms and also equipment which may restrict proper treatment.
ACADEMIC SECTION
South Africa is not caught up to the rest of the world with their health system. Many of our public health services are not run the correct way and display negative features such as no sanitization and no washing of hands.
A study was done at Lotus River primary Hospital to see how a public hospital is run and how patients are treated. This hospital displayed many negative features such as:
- Long waiting times. Patients are waiting outside in long lines to get before 8:00 am and still not get served on that day.
- Reusing urine cups. Nurses are reusing the cups that they give to their patients and just rinsing them with water and no sanitizer.
- Health professionals not wearing gloves when busy with a patient and also not washing their hands after they are finish with a patient or have just used the bathroom.
- Medical instruments are not being sterilized properly or adequately.
A study was done at The Quadrant Wellness Centre, a private hospital in Claremont to see how a private hospital is run. The facility was explained to be furnished with quality and expensive furniture, very clean and securely locked. Patients had to be buzzed in and may speak to the receptionist of the hospital through an intercom system. The patients that came into the private hospital were dressed in nice clothing and had high-end accessories compared to those in a public hospital. (Young, 2019).
Some advantages of day hospitals include:
- Procedures done at day hospitals are much less as than those of private or bigger hospitals. This is due to the required staff and also the technology and equipment required by them, it is not as advanced or much of a variety than other hospitals.
- Patients do not need to stay overnight after surgery and may be sent home immediately which is good as it reduces the risk of infection from their surroundings and other patients.
Disadvantages of day hospitals are that some find difficulty in securing licenses as they need to be within 5km away from a normal hospital in case of an emergency. Many private patients do not know about day hospitals and many need a referral letter from a doctor to attend one which is not easy to receive if you are already with a private hospital. (“The impact of day hospitals in South Africa”, 2019).
References
- Young, M. (2019). Private vs. Public Healthcare in South Africa. Retrieved from https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3752&context=honors_theses
- The impact of day hospitals in South Africa. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.ashburtoninvestments.com/za/financial-advisor/newsarticle/2018/04/25/the-impact-of-day-hospitals-in-south-africa
One thought on “South Africa’s Health System.”
Hey Caitlin,
I think you summarize well how the South American health system works. You compare publicly and privately in a good way, while showing both the positive and the negative with both systems. The picture you are referring to has a good connection with the text. It is exciting to see the difference from Norway, as we have very good public and private hospitals. The text made me think about how we meet the patient and understand that it can be a long time to wait for treatment.
Structure: You have a good structure of your text. I like the way you start with the positive and show us the negative sides last. It made it easy to follow the text and the facts, and retrieve the info. I specially liked the academic section where you referred to studies, and made it easy to get the facts from the studies.
Until next time: Maybe you can write a little bit more about why they don’t get the right treatment? Is it because they don’t have guidelines? Or they don’t have time to fix the problems?
Good luck with the new text and the rest of the studies.
Petter Grønstad.