Hospital Charity Organisation | Children's Hospital Trust

Multi-million Rand Upgrade for Medical Wards at SA’s only Children’s Hospital

As building commences on the first phase of the Medical Wards at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital, the Children’s Hospital Trust will now start fundraising to build and equip the second phase. An additional R13million is needed for the Trust to fulfill their commitment to refurbish the two medical wards on the Hospital’s B Floor. The Provincial Government of the Western Cape’s Department of Health has pledged 50% of the building cost.

Medical Wards B1 and B2 specialise in the treatment of general medical patients, infectious patients, and patients with chronic illnesses. These wards treat some of the Hospital’s youngest and sickest patients with 25% of admitted children HIV positive and 15% infected with tuberculosis.

These Medical Wards have insufficient space to accommodate patients and staff and inadequate facilities for parents who spend long periods at their children’s bedsides. Despite being housed in an outdated facility, the medical staff provide first-world care in a ward that has only had minor upgrades since the Hospital was built in 1956. Building starts in October 2011 and will be complete in June 2012. The upgraded ward will have additional general ward beds, and cubicles for high-care, low-care and isolation needs, fully equipped to manage high-care patients.

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Additional Information

The public private partnership that exists between the Trust and the Provincial Government of the Western Cape means that Government will finance 50% of the building cost of upgrades.

Ward B1 and B2 each have 80 to 100 admissions per month, with daily occupation of beds running at over 95%, and nearly 70% of children admitted to the wards are younger than one.

Patient intervention ranges from critical to palliative care. 50% to 60% of patients need high-care monitoring and many patients are admitted from the ICU, with community-acquired pneumonia infections that require isolation.

Upgrading the medical Wards will reduce the risk of cross-infection and provide increased isolation and general accommodation space, which is crucial for improving patient outcomes.

The upgrade will also be beneficial for the nurses and numerous allied health professionals, including physiotherapists, occupational and speech therapists, social workers, and dietician, who facilitate the short and long term rehabilitation process.

An essential Counselling Room will ensure privacy, as looking after the family is part of the Hospital’s holistic approach to healing. Other benefits of the upgrade will include a Patients Waiting Room, Parents Room, Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy Gym, a Staff Tea and Change Room, Working Procedure and Storage Areas, Kitchen and Sluice.

During the building, patients and staff will be moved to a temporary ward on the F floor as operational care is never compromised.

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