Johannesburg - The Sebokeng Hospital made history this past week when it performed its first brain surgeries in 40 years on two patients suffering from subdural haematoma (bleeding on the brain).
This milestone followed the recent establishment of a neurosurgery unit at the hospital. Previously, Sebokeng Hospital referred patients in need of brain surgery to Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital.
Gauteng MEC of Health and Wellness, Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko, congratulated the team, stating that the surgery was evidence of the support given by the Gauteng Department of Health to its centres of excellence, ensuring that health facilities had the right skills and equipment.
“As part of reclaiming the jewel of the Gauteng public health system, one of our key focus areas is to ensure that our facilities function optimally and that infrastructure challenges are addressed, as this has a direct bearing on positive health outcomes,” the MEC said.
The acting chief executive of the hospital, Dr Fhatuwani Mbara, said many patients who arrived at the facility with traumatic brain injury (TBI) died because of a lack of immediate neurosurgical intervention.
“TBI patients were occupying ICU beds for a prolonged duration with no definite management plan because the majority of the patients required different types of operations ranging from skull, brain, and spine surgeries.
“The newly established unit and the highly skilled team we have will ensure that we reduce head injury-related deaths that are sustained by our patients,” said Mbara.
Motalatale Modiba, the head of communication at the Gauteng Department of Health, said the first patient was a man who experienced weakness on the right side of his body and was unable to walk or talk.
“The neurosurgery team did a craniotomy on him, stopped the bleeding, and removed the blood clot. The operation took 2 hours to perform,” said Modiba.
A craniotomy is an operation in which a bone flap is removed from the skull to access the brain.
“The second patient is a young man who was injured 3 months ago and had subdural haematoma. A craniotomy was also done on him, and the clot was removed; however, his brain was severely swollen due to the injury. The team did a cranioplasty to protect the brain from potential physical harm.
“The two patients have recovered well and were discharged this past weekend to spend time with their families at home,” Modiba said.
The Star