Joint media release: Premier Winde and Provincial Health and Wellness Minister Mbombo help hand over Tygerberg Hospital neo-natal and paediatric ICUs refurbished by Carte Blanche Making a Difference Trust.
Premier Alan Winde and Provincial Minister of Health and Wellness Dr Nomafrench Mbombo today helped hand over the newly refurbished Phase 1 and 2 of Tygerberg Hospital’s Neo-natal and Paediatric Intensive Care Units (NICU and PICUs).
Tygerberg Hospital is a hugely important health facility that provides critical services to over 50% of the Western Cape’s children. Over 7000 children are born at the Hospital’s Obstetrics Department every year. It is the primary referral hospital for high-risk pregnancies in the province. While the hospital does have Neonatal and Paediatric ICUs, they did not have “specialist beds” for all children being treated for cardio-thoracic pre-and post-operative care; and needed contemporary infrastructure. The previous NICU and PICU rooms did not have the desperately needed capacity for the thousands of children admitted there. That was until today.
The Carte Blanche Making a Difference Trust has once again come through for the Western Cape’s public health sector through its invaluable work to upgrade and improve Academic Paediatric Surgical, High Care, and ICU departments at State Hospitals. The Trust raised funds to refurbish three rooms and recreate two ICU beds specifically for pre-and post-operative care for neonates and children at Tygerberg Hospital. To date, the Trust has completed 22 projects, and today’s success story is the latest such initiative.
During a handover ceremony at the hospital today, Premier Alan Winde commended Carte Blanche, along with everyone who made this medical care achievement possible. He said: “Partnerships are how we are going to build a better country. Government cannot be alone; citizens cannot be alone. We have to come together.” The Premier added there is no more perfect example of a partnership than the one that delivered this world-class health facility.
Among the lessons learned from the Western Cape’s Covid-19 response was a sense of urgency needed to give health services a shot in the arm to deal with such a crisis. “Taking such lessons forward, moving beyond the pandemic we can do amazing things in our health sector, such as refurbishing these units,” said the Premier.
While touring the units, Minister Mbombo said: “Children born with cardiac-related defects now have a better quality of care. It is critical they have access to these kinds of interventions.”
Multichoice Group Executive and Head of Corporate Affairs Collen Dlamini said: “We are proud to make a positive contribution to the communities in which we operate. Today’s handover is a fine example of that.”
Many more of our children will now be able to receive high-class treatment at these facilities while the waiting time will be cut. This will help reduce infant mortality.
Dr Granville Marinus, Tygerberg Hospital’s Medical Manager for Paediatrics and Child Health thanked the Carte Blanche Making a Different Trust and said: “Our investment and the Trust’s investment into this project is huge. I believe it will positively impact many lives forever.”