Patients turned back

MBABANE – Patients at Matsanjeni Health Centre had to go home without getting their medication because the dispenser is on sick leave.

The dispenser, Zodwa Nhleko went home early last week after suffering from an undisclosed illness.

The sister who usually assists when Nhleko is away was also not present for the better part of last week, mainly because she also had other duties to do.

It was gathered that after nurses diagnonised patients, they went home without receiving their medication and told to come back at a later date.

Even though this happens quite often, the past week was the worst as the dispenser was not available for almost the whole week. The situation was the same even yesterday.

A nurse based at this health centre said they were saddened by this because the patients blame them for being ineffective.

"We try to explain that we are not dispensers but nurses. Some understand while others tell us about the long distances they travel just to get medication," the source said.

The Matsanjeni Health Centre is a referral of the other clinics in the area and services communities around Lavumisa, including Lubulini and Hluthi.

"The patients have no choice but to leave without any medication. There is nothing we can do because we have tried to rope in the assistance of many structures but nothing has been done," said the source.

Secretary General of the Swaziland Nurses Association (SNA) Sibusiso Lushaba confirmed knowledge of the matter.

He said: "We have discussed it with government because we cannot allow nurses to work in the dispensary. We want a long lasting solution to rectify the problem. Even though we were not given a timeframe, we were assured that government would work on it."

According to Lushaba, the Nhlangano Health Centre is also faced with a similar problem.

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