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Jubilation as Freedom Park Clinic opens - Newsroom - 02-04-2014
For many years, the community of Freedom Park had to rely on the services of a mobile clinic for their health care needs. But all this is set to change, with a state-of-the-art clinic having opened its doors there on Tuesday.
Community members from Freedom Park and close-by Naturena showed up in their numbers to witness the start of a new chapter in health services. Nomathemba Nkosi, a 67-year-old diabetic, who also has high blood pressure, thanked local government for responding to the community’s needs.
“We’ve been waiting for this construction for many years. Since 1994, we’ve seen progress in this area, including the construction of houses, but we didn’t have a clinic and had to walk long distances to access health care services.
“This clinic will not only benefit us elders, who are suffering from many diseases but mothers and their babies will also benefit from it ,as they need its services the most,†said Nkosi.
The construction of the clinic followed a request from the community to the City of Johannesburg for improved public health care services. In response to the request, the City approved a budget of R13 million towards the construction of the new clinic.
The clinic will render services such as prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission, acute chronic care, youth and adolescent friendly services, social workers and emergency isolation, amongst others.
Joburg mayor Parks Tau, who officiated the opening of the clinic, said the completion of the health institute indicated government’s commitment to development.
He urged the community to look after the clinic.
“This asset is for the community. Make sure that in 20 years’ time, this asset continues to service us,†Mayor Tau said.
Ahead of the opening of the clinic, Mayor Tau also conducted a *** turning ceremony for the construction of a new library in Freedom Park, which is expected to start soon.
Mayor Tau, who was in the company of First Lady Bongi Ngema-Zuma, spent half the day visiting various food projects under the Food Security Programme.
Ngema-Zuma used an opportunity to educate the community on non-communicable diseases (NCDs). She made a commitment to come back to the clinic once it is operational, where she would talk with patients on the treatment of NCDs.
NHI clinic opens in Tshwane
Meanwhile, the City of Tshwane has also opened a R14-million National Health Insurance (NHI) pilot project clinic in Doornpoort.
The clinic, which opened recently, will offer residents of Region 2 a comprehensive primary health facility.
Since its inception in 1996, the Doornpoort Clinic has been operating as a satellite clinic with only one nurse rendering preventative services. A need was identified to convert the satellite clinic into a primary health care facility to improve accessibility to disadvantaged groups, who previously had to travel more than 5km to access a health facility.
The new clinic will operate with 18 consulting rooms, which will provide staff sufficient space to implement the full primary health care package. In addition, it will offer other comprehensive primary health care services such as tuberculosis and antiretroviral treatment services. - SAnews.gov.za