Cape Town - Following three years of dedicated campaigning and R122 million in donations received, the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital was finally able to cut its ribbon, signalling the completion and opening of its newly upgraded and expanded Emergency Centre.
Adorned subtly throughout the state-of-the-art facility were the names of a community of sponsors and donors who made the project possible – the country’s first such 24-hour Emergency Centre.
The hospital and the Children’s Hospital Trust (CHT), the hospital’s primary fund-raising platform, officially opened the Emergency Centre yesterday with Premier Alan Winde, Health MEC Nomafrench Mbombo and Health Department head Dr Keith Cloete and many of its sponsors and donors in attendance.
Children’s Hospital Trust CEO Chantel Cooper said the expansion and upgrades were necessary as the Emergency Centre was tiny, with one entrance used by ambulances, parents and patients.
A new burns area able to accommodate about 4 000 children was added.
“There is a serious problem with child abuse in the Western Cape in particular, so we have a child protection room that provides privacy but also specialised care for children who have experienced physical and also sexual abuse. Another element that we’ve added is the lift, and that literally could save the life of a child.”
Hospital CEO Dr Anita Parbhoo said: “Our hope with creating a beautiful and modern physical environment is that it will actually enable us to fulfil children’s rights, to ensure we treat our patients and their families with dignity and respect, and also make a wonderful working environment for all our staff who really have to deal with some traumatic issues with patients.”
Hospital Trust chairperson Randall Titus said the trust, established about 30 years ago, had raised more than R1 billion to advance child health-care in the province and in sub-Saharan Africa.
“It stands today as the single largest project yet undertaken by the trust to improve the child health-care infrastructure in the Western Cape. The CHT could only do so because our society cares,” Titus said.
One mother of a patient at the hospital, Tershia Africa, told of her personal experience receiving treatment for her son Noah who had suffered serious facial abrasions, following a car accident in August last year.
“When we got here, Noah was seen to promptly and I was obviously stressed out. It was a disaster. The doctors and the nurses reassured me that he’ll be okay and that he’s in good hands. So that’s why I also want to thank the hospital and all the staff for their great service.
“I remember being fearful of our stay and what it would be like, whether there would be enough space for us especially for Noah. So all that I can do now is thank God for guiding us here,” Africa said.
3/4 The Hospital’s Emergency Centre serves 45,000 children a year and 53% of the little patients are under the age of five while 25% are under one. Most of these patients come from impoverished communities and rely on governmental hospitalisation. pic.twitter.com/9R9LhL4JCt
— Premier Alan Winde (@alanwinde) February 24, 2022