KZN Health Department faces backlash from unions over Northdale Hospital power outage
Staff who cooked food on an open fire due to the power outage are facing disciplinary action
A power outage at the Northdale Hospital in Pietermaritzburg led to hospital staff cooking outside on an open fire. This has resulted in Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane calling for disciplinary action against these staff members. Picture: Independent Newspapers Archives
Image: Independent Newspapers Archives
Health worker unions have accused the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health of attempting to use frontline staff as scapegoats after kitchen staff at Northdale Hospital in Pietermaritzburg cooked food on an open fire last week during a power outage at the hospital.
MEC for Health Nomagugu Simelane confirmed that there had been a power outage. She also announced disciplinary action against hospital staff who had cooked food outside as she said this was against regulations.
However the Public Servants Association (PSA) and the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) slammed the department’s response.
Nehawu’s Ntokozo Nxumalo stated that workers should not be blamed for failures rooted in Northdale Hospital’s ageing infrastructure.
“We were disturbed and surprised by the statement from the department and the MEC’s office regarding disciplinary processes,” said Nxumalo.
“These disciplinary measures are just (an attempt to) scapegoat. They are trying to run away from taking responsibility for the poor infrastructure at that hospital. Now they are shifting the blame onto workers,” he said.
Nxumalo stated that the real issue stemmed from a community power outage and the failure of the hospital's backup systems. “They need to deal with the infrastructure and install new generators that can work during power outages. Hospitals must be isolated from community electricity failures because health facilities are critical,” he said.
PSA provincial manager Mlungisi Ndlovu echoed these sentiments, saying: “The crisis at Northdale Hospital exposes the brutal reality of capitalist decay, a system that abandons workers and the poor while shielding the political elite.”
Ndlovu stated that healthcare workers were not to blame for systemic failures.
“Workers, acting in solidarity to protect patients and themselves, are not the villains. They are the last defence of public health against a system in decay. We reject any attempt to scapegoat workers for management’s failures,” he said.
The PSA warned it was ready to defend workers legally and through mass mobilisation if needed.
MEC Simelane said she was “gravely concerned” by images of meals being prepared outside with firewood, calling it “unacceptable” and a breach of safety protocols.
“In light of this breach, I have already requested the department to take the necessary disciplinary steps against those responsible,” she said.
She added that although all three backup generators initially activated during the power failure, one later malfunctioned, affecting sections of the hospital including the kitchen.
“We appreciate the swift efforts of the service provider, who repaired the generator within hours,” Simelane said.
The MEC said broader infrastructure upgrades, including roof renovations, were scheduled to begin next week and stressed that Northdale Hospital remained fully operational.