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The senior leadership of the Department of Health in the North West will be meeting over three days in Rustenburg to discuss the delivery priorities of the next financial year. The Departmental Lekgotla (Bosberaad) starts on Monday, the 12th of November 2001 and ends on Wednesday, the 14th of November 2001.

This lekgotla takes place against the background of progress made by the department over the last few years. Two weeks ago, a delegation from the Vietnamese government praised the department for its commitment to deliver quality health services to the poorest of the poor.

Professor Pham Manth Hung, the Vietnamese Permanent Deputy Minister of Health said that he was particularly impressed by the emphasis the department is putting on quality care and the way health workers are assisting in the implementation of the Patients' Rights Charter and Batho Pele principles.

In addition, the figures of the burden of HIV/AIDS infection announced this year indicate that the North West is the only province that has shown a decrease in the level of HIV/AIDS infection. "These gains were made in the absence of a cure for HIV/AIDS infection. What it says to us is that our behaviour is still the best weapon against HIV/AIDS. Indeed, our actions count," said Dr Molefi Sefularo, MEC for Health in the North West.

The North West made history two weeks ago when it became the first province to pass the Provincial Council on AIDS Act which establishes the Provincial Council on AIDS (PCA) as a government-supported institution (GSI), for purposes of addressing the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the province. This is a first in the country. The PCA is an important component of our strategic plan to combat HIV/AIDS. The PCA will monitor and co-ordinate programmes and strategies employed to address HIV/AIDS issues. It will also perform advisory functions to the Provincial Government and recommend necessary research into areas of HIV/AIDS.

The department has also registered major improvements in the quality of health care. There has been a drop of almost 25% in cases of patient neglect between the year 1999 and the year 2000. This success is attributed to the effectiveness of the Clinical Investigation Committee (CIC), which was established to investigate all complaints and reports of negligence and professional malpractice on the part of health workers. It recommends corrective measures, including punishment.

"Amongst other things, the department will find practical ways of consolidating the gains we made over the last year," said the MEC for Health, Dr Molefi Sefularo.

Combating HIV/AIDS and improving the provision of quality ambulance services to the poorest of the poor are expected to be high on the agenda. Dr Sefularo announced recently that every health centre in the North West will have an ambulance stationed next to it before the end of March next year.

Contact: Cornelius Monama at 082 578 4063

Issued by: Office of the MEC for Health, North West, 5 November 2001