Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, says he believes that a "no-fault compensation fund" is the way to address medico-legal claims bedevilling the Eastern Cape Health Department.
He made the remark while addressing the media after a day-long meeting with the Eastern Cape officials including Health MEC, Nomakosazana Meth on Thursday.
"I am convinced that we need an approach that is more or less the same to deal with medico-legal claims so that anyone who suffers any adverse injuries whilst attending health services should be able to go and claim without needing to go through a lawyer," he said.
Mkhize said they should also be able to get the compensation that is appropriate for the kind of injury or harm that they would have suffered.
However, the Minister said it was important to cap the level of claims so that there is not a situation where one person is going to "put up a claim for several million" which is not based on a realistic cost but to postulate on future costs about something that government is already offering services about.
On Wednesday, Mkhize announced the appointment of retired Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo as the chairperson of the No-Fault Compensation Fund, set up to allow those who may suffer permanent damage due to COVID-19 vaccines to be compensated.
According to reports, the government intends to gazette the finalised regulations for the Vaccine Adverse Events Compensation Scheme, by 22 April, to meet the deadline set by Covid-19 vaccine manufacturers Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer.
Meanwhile, Mkhize said he was also encouraged to see that the Eastern Cape has embarked on a turn-around strategy, or Service Optmisation Plan to turn the Health Department around.
He said he had encouraged newly appointed MEC Nomakosazana Meth to ensure that they "re-imagine a new approach" to offering health services in the province which takes into account the human resource requirements contained in the Department's HR strategy.
This includes speedily filling critical and vacant posts in the Health Department.
Earlier in the day, members of the health-sector union Nehawu protested at Dora Nginza Hospital where they were demanding that Minister Mkhize address grievances contained in memorandums delivered to national and provincial departments.
Nehawu, among other things, wants the Health Department to improve the state of services in the Eastern Cape and to provide clarity on the future of nurses employed during the Covid19 lockdown who were reinstated after their contracts expired, but recently told to stay at home.
