Govt staff in ‘Kapana’ overtime sharing fraud

Health and Social Services Minister Dr Bernhard Haufiku says he will stamp out the practice of ministry staff illegally sharing overtime called ‘Kapana’. Haufiku was speaking yesterday at his first staff meeting at the Katutura State Hospital, where he also heard how tuberculosis patients smoke dagga in their wards. Haufiku said he was shocked recently to learn that staff members go on leave and then share overtime payments with the colleagues who did their work. This arrangement is apparently referred to as ‘Kapana’. “This is criminal. One nurse [even] bought a car, and after the person was moved to a different department the person became depressed, because they could no longer afford the instalments,” he said. He criticised staff that use hospital facilities as a marketplace. “Some of us are selling chicken while we are supposed to clean. Some are even selling boerewors in the [operating] theatre. I took a picture of this in 2013,” he said. He also said there should be no excuse for cleaners who fail in their duties. “Cockroaches are roaming the halls. You cannot tell me a as a cleaner you waited for [cleaning]material, you must insist. We must maintain a certain standard of cleanliness,” he said. Haufiku told cleaning staff that there is overwhelming evidence that the ministry cannot manage the cleaning functions, hence a decision to outsource it. Referring to the dilapidated state of the nurses’ homes, Haufiku said he wants to cry because these facilities used to be spotless and respected. “Every time I pass by, it my tears want to fall. It has now become a squatter camp, we will put an end to it,” he said. He also lamented the maintenance of State hospitals and says he is considering outsourcing that too. It has also come to light that the air-conditioner in the cardiac theatre is out of order, leaving patients vulnerable to infection. According to nursing staff, the cardiac unit, which is the only one in Namibia, is overcrowded because it serves State and private patients, and Haufiku responded that this division may be outsourced as well. Quality doctors The minister says he has no intention of recruiting half-baked doctors simply because there is a serious shortage of health professionals in the country. This follows a string of complaints from patients countrywide over the quality of services provided by doctors from a particular country. “We have just put a moratorium on the doctors from a certain country. The complaints and the patterns were the same,” he said. He further questioned the academic results of some student doctors, saying Namibia cannot afford to send students to medical schools without having a clue of what they are being taught. “Someone asked me what type of doctor I want to take care of me when I am an old mans and I said, a competent one,” he says. Opuwo outreach Haufiku announced that he will be accompanied by seven young doctors on a visit to the Opuwo State Hospital. This follows a string of minor operations he conducted at the Khorixas District Hospital in the Kunene Region last month. “This is not a public show. We are going to see what it is that needs to be done to design a package for a district hospital,” he said. He added that district hospital services must be strengthened at all costs in order to ease the burden on Windhoek hospitals. WINDHOEK JEMIMA BEUKES