The Gauteng Department of Health has rejected Democratic Alliance (DA) claims that a patient was left permanently blind in his right eye after waiting six months for sight-saving retinal surgery at Steve Biko Academic Hospital (SBAH) Eye Clinic, in Tshwane.
The response follows a media statement issued by the DA on Monday, August 3, in which the party made the claims.
DA Gauteng spokesperson for health Madeleine Hicklin, an MPL, claimed the delay was caused by the failure of the compressor and suction systems needed to operate the constellation machine, which had broken down and had yet to be replaced.
Hicklin said the party was calling on Gauteng MEC for Health Faith Mazibuko and Head of Department Dr Darian Barclay to urgently intervene to ensure the immediate procurement of the required equipment, restore retinal surgery services at Steve Biko Academic Hospital, and prevent more patients from suffering avoidable and permanent vision loss.
“The suspension of retinal surgery at Steve Biko’s Eye Clinic was brought to our attention by this patient, who has been living with a detached retina in his right eye since February.
“Despite multiple consultations at the Steve Biko and Mamelodi Eye Clinics, he did not receive the urgent surgery he required. A procedure was only recently performed at Mamelodi Eye Clinic to try to save his left eye. He has since been referred to Steve Biko.”
Hicklin said the patient told the party that he was one of “countless patients” who had suffered because of prolonged delays in repairing the equipment needed for retinal surgery at Steve Biko’s Eye Clinic.
“Another patient confirmed this, stating that during a follow-up examination, the clinic informed him that they were not performing retinal surgeries because they had not yet resolved the compressor issue.”
The party claimed a reliable source informed it that specialists had even raised R10,000 to buy a replacement compressor so retinal surgeries could continue.
“However, hospital management reportedly rejected the offer, insisting that the procurement had to follow the Gauteng Department of Health’s Supply Chain Management processes.
“A WhatsApp message shared with us confirms the frustration among specialists, who believe unnecessary procurement delays have prevented the resumption of retinal surgeries and placed patients at risk. This contradicts earlier assurances from hospital management that the situation was under control and there were no waiting lists for surgery,” Hicklin said.
Hicklin said the department’s failure to act with the urgency the crisis demanded was inexcusable.
“While officials hid behind procurement processes, patients were left waiting for sight-saving surgery until it was too late.”
However, in a statement on Tuesday, August 4, the Gauteng Department of Health rejected what it described as the “factually flawed” claims that a patient had been left permanently blind because of broken equipment at Steve Biko Academic Hospital (SBAH) Eye Clinic.
Department spokesperson Steve Mabona said, “Accordingly, we sympathise with the patient and acknowledge the distress associated with deteriorating or lost vision.
“However, such a sensitive matter must be communicated responsibly and based on verified clinical information rather than assumptions that may unnecessarily alarm patients and undermine confidence in public healthcare services.”
Mabona said the patient had experienced medical challenges arising from multiple previous surgical procedures.
“Specialists at another hospital within the SBAH cluster assessed the patient and operated on the eye that had the better prospect of retaining vision.”
According to Mabona, the patient was informed through a counselling process that the prognosis for the other eye was already poor and that surgery was unlikely to restore vision.
“It is therefore inaccurate and misleading to attribute the irreversible loss of vision solely to the equipment and infrastructure challenges at the Hospital.”
Mabona said the department acknowledged procurement delays relating to infrastructure issues that had affected service delivery.
“Procurement processes are at an advanced stage to procure necessary equipment to resolve this matter. Delivery of equipment is expected in due course to alleviate this situation.”
He said it must be emphasised that the patient’s clinical records did not support the claim that the infrastructure challenges had contributed significantly to the blindness.
“Presenting these challenges as the direct cause of the patient’s permanent blindness disregards the documented medical history and creates a distorted account of the circumstances.”
Mabona said the department was concerned by what it described as the continued careless handling of confidential and complex clinical matters without first establishing the full facts.
“We all have a responsibility to communicate health matters accurately, particularly where unverified claims may cause unnecessary anxiety among patients awaiting care, and as such we must be cautious at all times.
“We continue to prioritise the restoration of affected services, the maintenance of essential infrastructure and medical equipment, and appropriate referral pathways between facilities.
“Patients requiring specialist ophthalmic care will continue to be clinically assessed and referred to facilities capable of providing the required interventions,” he added.
