22 July 2015
Construction of the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital, in Parktown, Johannesburg, is going smoothly and is expected to be completed in February 2016.
Sibongile Mkhabela, the chief executive of the hospital’s trust, said that on completion, the hospital would be handed over for equipment and interior design features to be installed.
“The official opening will then take place late 2016,” said Mkhabela.
About 150 doctors and 451 paediatric nurses would be employed once the hospital opened. The first phase of recruitment for the hospital had already started.
“There are two aspects to the planning of the recruitment for the hospital. Firstly, is the need to upskill nurses as well as fellowship training (post-graduate doctor training). Training for nurses started in 2014 and will be ongoing, and the fellowship training will begin in the second half of this year,” she said.
“Secondly, the actual recruitment process which will be led by an appointed human resource committee. The process of recruiting staff is to start in the last quarter of 2015.”
Last week, the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital Trust received a R861 074.27 donation from the Department of International Relations and Co-operation and the diplomatic community during Nelson Mandela International Day celebration in Winterveld, Pretoria.
Mkhabela said the trust was honoured to have received the support from the department, its representatives abroad, and the diplomatic community at large. “The advocacy displayed by Ambassador Tebogo Seokolo in not only raising awareness but also ensuring a successful fundraising event is admirable.”
Seokolo is South Africa’s ambassador to Austria, Slovakia and Slovenia. He is also the permanent representative to the international organisations.
“We are also proud that South Africans heeded the call to action to support us as we make Madiba’s dream a reality. It is because we were able to raise the initial funding locally that we were able to stand proud as we invited international donors to join us as partners in this legacy project,” she said.
The hospital will be the second children’s hospital in South Africa; the first is the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital, in Rondebosch, Cape Town.
Source: SAnews.gov
