The dilapidated and outdated condition of St. Apollinaris Hospital in Creighton, KwaZulu-Natal, necessitates a complete overhaul or rebuilding, particularly focusing on the urgency of establishing a new Mother and Child Unit.
KZN Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane highlighted this after leading a fact-finding mission at the hospital on Friday. This is after receiving complaints regarding certain operational deficiencies.
The hospital, located in the Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma Municipality, is situated in the midst of rural homesteads.
Simelane said she saw that some people love their work and community because some of the conditions they work under are not good at all.
“Each ward has an operations manager. When you listen to them, you hear that they face many challenges,” Simelane said.
The MEC thanked staff for the work they continuously do, while highlighting that they found several problems at the hospital.
“Firstly, the hospital is very old. They have tried but they have reached a point where there is no more pulling beyond what they have done,” Simelane said.
“Which means that what is truly needed here is a new hospital. But unfortunately, since there is no money, we won’t be able to demolish everything all at once and build a new hospital. So, we have agreed with the head office management that we will go back… even if it means that the hospital starts to be fixed section by section.”
Simelane said they also saw where women give birth and where children stay.
“The hospital is very clean, with the little they have, you see that they are trying, but because it is an old hospital, you see that (patients) walk long distances, even pregnant women, which is something that should not be happening,” Simelane said.
She said they will talk to business people to see if they can help.
She explained that the standard government process for a project—requiring feasibility studies, budget allocation, etc.—is lengthy, taking two to three years. Therefore, while pursuing government channels, they are also seeking business partners to urgently start the Mother and Child Unit.
“I just want to say that I left the wards very depressed… I have seen how bad it is,” Simelane said.
“Indeed, the hospital really needs help; it needs to be fixed. In fact, even rebuilt.”
The MEC committed to the community that they will seek a solution on how they can help them in finding money for the hospital to be built and fixed, including the issue of hiring and adding staff, which is a problem the whole province is facing.
The visit is in line with the department’s pledge for 2026, that top management will be on site to provide active support to facilities currently facing challenges.
