103-year-old McCord Hospital won't close
2013-01-30 22:23
Video
2013-01-22 11:30
The future of one of the largest hospitals in KwaZulu-Natal remains uncertain. Watch.WATCH
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Durban - A 103-year-old Durban hospital will not be closed, KwaZulu-Natal Health MEC Sibongiseni Dhlomo said on Wednesday.
"The board and management of McCord Hospital accepted the offer from the department of health to take over the health care services at McCord Hospital," Dhlomo said.
McCord is one of KwaZulu-Natal's largest hospitals, consisting of 140
beds and 400 staff. It also runs the country's biggest HIV care and
treatment programme.
Hospital management said two weeks ago that it had decided to close the facility by the end of March, because the provincial department had failed to inform it what its annual subsidy, if any, would be.
The hospital received a R70m subsidy in 2011/12.
Last week, KwaZulu-Natal health department head Sibongile Zungu said no decision had been made on a subsidy.
Dhlomo said there had been numerous discussions between the department of health and the management at McCord seeking a mutual resolution of challenges faced by the hospital.
His department would immediately begin a process to work out modalities related to the takeover.
"We have no evidence that suggests that there might have been financial mismanagement by McCord Hospital," he said.
Dhlomo said the department needed to make sure the services at the hospital continued and Treasury would assist where it was needed.
- SAPA
