The Gauteng Department of Health has firmly rejected claims that Helen Joseph Hospital experienced a backlog in processing deceased patients due to a shortage of printer cartridges.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) alleged that corpses could not be transferred to government mortuaries for almost two weeks because of printing delays.
However, the department clarified that the hospital currently has only one body in its mortuary, a patient who was declared dead on arrival last Wednesday.
Gauteng Health Spokesperson Motalatale Modiba explained that the patient was unidentified at arrival but has since been linked to a family in KwaZulu-Natal.
“The body will now be handed over to the forensic services on Monday,” Modiba confirmed.
Temporary printing issues resolved at Helen Joseph Hospital
While the department acknowledged that the hospital did experience technical difficulties, it insists the matter was handled promptly.
Modiba said printing problems occurred between 17 and 23 June due to delayed payments to service providers. Despite this, the hospital implemented contingency plans to continue operations.
“Five pending cases were processed by 24 June,” he said.
Modiba said that the department had acted to resolve the matter.
“The department would like to reiterate that currently Helen Joseph Hospital has no corpses that are outstanding and awaiting to be processed as a result of printing challenges,” he added.
DA criticism met with pushback
The Democratic Alliance’s claims of mismanagement and neglect at the Helen Joseph Hospital have drawn criticism from the department, which views the allegations as misleading. The department maintains that all patients have been processed appropriately and that no backlog exists. It also reassured the public that steps have been taken to avoid a recurrence of such technical issues.
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