The departmental spokesperson, Mondli Mvambi, says the hospital has had to deal with two different pipe bursts since Saturday, 29 October 2022. The department became aware of the first pipe burst through social media posts where people were complaining about the lack of water in the hospital.

"After we investigated, we found out that it is indeed true - there is water in the greater region of Kroonstad except for our Boitumelo Hospital due to a pipe burst," adds Mvambi. The matter was attended to and the pipe was repaired by Monday, 31 October 2022.

On Tuesday, 1 November 2022 another pipe burst on a different side of the hospital, which the department’s technical services section attended to. "Contractors on site have promised the matter will be resolved soonest – even before Thursday, 03 November 2022."

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Even with the pipe bursts that have happened, Mvambi states that patients were and continue to be supplied with water manually for toilets, bathing and drinking water for their medication. "The inconvenience caused by the burst pipe is regrettable, but the department is on top of the situation and services have not been terminated," he concluded.

The challenges at the hospital were previously put on the spot by the provincial Democratic Alliance (DA) after an oversight visit. The biggest challenge that was found at the hospital was the backlog of orthopaedic surgeries. 

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The DA Health spokesperson in the provincial legislature, Mariëtte Pittaway, alleged that they found the operating rooms non-functional and that this has been an issue since May 2022.

"The air conditioners are out of order due to vandalism and we also found leaking roofs in the theatres. We were informed that only emergency procedures are being done in the theatres."

She adds that operating without air conditioners, in high temperatures is an extreme risk and increases the chance of infection. The broken air conditioners are only one of the challenges at the Boitumelo Hospital. The DA is of the view that there is little to no general maintenance taking place at the hospital.

"Boitumelo Hospital is part of the nationally funded hospital revitalisation programme, and upgrading commenced in 2009. Contract 12 of this programme, which includes an ICU, is still not completed as scheduled in 2014," said Pittaway. 

The party further alleges that there is currently a backlog of 2947 surgeries in the province. 

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The issue of a backlog of orthopaedic surgeries in the province is not an unusual one. In early 2022, some of the patients at the province’s foremost trauma hospital, the Pelonomi Hospital, complained about a long waiting period before getting operated. 

A doctor, who spoke anonymously, outlined some of the challenges that have led to the backlog of orthopaedic operations at the hospital. The doctor at the time said there is a critical shortage of nurses and the shortage is worse after hours and on weekends. 

Due to the shortage of nurses, only one theatre can be used for all trauma cases. Among the shortage of staff, there was also a shortage of medical accessories, such as syringe needles and protective clothing, as well as a backlog of equipment maintenance and a shortage of linen.

 The staff shortage also affects not only nurses but also security guards and cleaners. Doctors and nurses reportedly have to step in regularly to get the theatre ready for the next surgery.

UPDATE: The water challenges at the Boitumelo Hospital in Kroonstad, Free State, are resolved after the burst water pipe has been repaired. The hospital's sister in charge at Casualties, Matsie Mofokeng, expressed her gratitude to the department’s technical team for assisting and making sure water is restored at the hospital. “We did not have water for the past two days, however, as of now, we do - all thanks to the department’s technical team that worked tirelessly.”

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