Frequently Asked Questions
Feel free to peruse this section of frequently asked questions. We will continue to add to this list of FAQs as we receive them but if you don't find what you're looking for please feel free to contact the Children's Hospital Trust.
Children's Hospital Trust FAQs
Why should I support the Children's Hospital Trust when it is so well supported?
Why should I support the Red Cross War Memorial if I don't live in Cape Town?
Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital FAQs
Does the South African government support the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital?
Is the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital a teaching hospital?
What are the total number of admissions to the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital per annum?
Children's Hospital Trust FAQs
Q: How much of my donation will go to the cause?
A: 100% of donations go towards the current fundraising priority.
A: The running costs of the Children's Hospital Trust are completely covered by the interest earned on the capital accrued.
A: Yes, if you are in South Africa and if your donation is over R100 per annum.
Q: Why should I fund a government hospital?
A: While the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital is funded by the Provincial Government, which pays its annual operational costs of nearly R300 million, high demands on the overall Provincial Health and Capital Works budgets make it difficult for Province to fund all the Hospital's building and equipment needs. It was precisely for this reason that the Children's Hospital Trust was established in 1994 to ensure the Hospital remains at the cutting edge of paediatric care on the African continent.
Q: Why do children need a dedicated hospital?
A: Treating children is a highly specialised process because children are not just small adults. In a dedicated hospital, such as the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital, The health services provided are comprehensive and are geared to meet the needs of all children. The staff at this Hospital function as a team to manage each patient. In other words, the services are child-centred, completely integrated, holistic and absolutely age-appropriate. The net result is vastly improved health outcomes for child patients. The patients referred to the Hospital rank among the sickest of sick children who, almost without exception, require highly complex interventions involving a wide range of sub-specialties in order to recover. The Hospital has the skills to provide this level of care and, importantly, the professional staff believe that only through teamwork and by harnessing all the medical expertise needed can you really maximise the chances of a child's recovery. Teaching, training and research are fundamental elements of these services, as is constant medical self-audit and critical clinical evaluation.
Q: Why should I support the Children's Hospital Trust when it is so well supported?
A: The Children's Hospital Trust is a non-profit organisation that relies on the benevolence of donors to realise its aims and objectives. It has a record of sound financial administration and good governance and is able to assure donors that every last cent donated is spent on improving the Hospital. Since 1994, the Trust has raised public funds to address many pressing needs at the Hospital, but much has yet to be done. For example, there is an urgent need to complete the ongoing programme of ward upgrading, to build a new X-ray Department and to construct a much needed Infectious Disease Unit that will include a Children's Endocrinology and Diabetic Unit. All these projects were identified and prioritised by the Hospital itself and are included in the Hospital's current strategic plan. Rapid progress in health sciences and medical technology has brought with it vastly improved diagnostic and treatment modalities. Modern medical equipment enhances efficiencies and improves medical outcomes giving children a fighting chance.
Q: Why should I support the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital if I don't live in Cape Town?
A: Although based in Cape Town, the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital treats young patients who are referred from other provinces in South Africa and from countries beyond our borders. The majority are from poor and marginalised communities and more than half are under a year old. In addition, the Hospital is something of an umbilical cord in the sense that its professional staff provide telephonic advice and support on the diagnosis and treatment of problem cases to medical practitioners and specialists working in both the public and private sectors throughout South Africa. Even the general public has direct access to the Hospital through its invaluable Poison Centre hotline. In association with the University of Cape Town's Health Sciences Faculty, the Hospital is a major centre of learning, with the School of Child and Adolescent Health (SCAH) on the campus. A wide range of paediatric disciplines are taught and important medical research is conducted into childhood diseases. This research is particularly relevant because it is set in the South African context and, as such, contributes to the advancement of children's health in developing countries worldwide. Despite the great call on the Hospital's services the professional staff still manage to continue an active programme of outreach, transferring paediatric skills and knowledge to nurse practitioners in rural settings, doctors in small town hospitals and to fellow specialists in large regional hospitals, both in this and neighbouring provinces. While a leader in the field of paediatric teaching on the African continent, for South Africa as a whole the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital is more than just a major teaching hospital, it is undoubtedly now a very valuable, national, provincial and even continental asset.
Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital FAQs
Q: Does the South African government support the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital?
A: Yes, the Western Cape Provincial Government pays for the running costs of the Hospital. Budgets are tight, so when it comes to upgrading facilities or purchasing new medical equipment, we are most grateful to the public, for their ongoing support.
Q: Is the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital a teaching hospital?
A: Yes, undergraduate paediatric students from the University of Cape Town's Faculty of Health Sciences, paediatric nurses from the Western Cape College of Nursing and post-graduate students from around the world receive training and experience in the wards and clinics. Students come from countries as diverse as Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Germany, Hungary, Israel, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the United States, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Ivory Coast, Uganda and Kenya.
Q: What are the total number of admissions to the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital per annum:
A: Here is a breakdown of the admissions:
Inpatients - 1,600 per month (19,980 p.a.)
Outpatients - 18,100 per month (217,200 p.a.)
Trauma and Medical Emergency - 3,350 per month (40,200 p.a.)
Operations - 700 per month (8,400 p.a.)
Q: Where do all the Hospital's patients come from?
A: 40% of patients come from outside the Western Cape. Many patients come from outside South Africa, such as Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Namibia, Mauritius, Botswana, Kenya, Angola, Zimbabwe and other African continents. In fact, patients have even been referred from Hungary and Romania.
Q: How many private patients does the Hospital see?
A: 5% of all patients are on private medical aids and healthcare.
Q: How many staff work at the Hospital?
A: The Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital has a staff complement of 1100, ranging from academics, doctors and nurses to professions allied to medicine, clerical and non-professional staff. Undergraduate and postgraduate paediatric students from South Africa and around the world train at the Hospital.
Q: How does HIV affect the work at the Hospital?
A: Approximately 35% of all patients being treated are HIV positive and around 30% have full-blown AIDS.
Q: Is there another children's hospital in South Africa?
A: A proposed new hospital for children in Gauteng, South Africa, as outlined by the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund, has received a warm welcome. We believe it can only be good to have another hospital dedicated to helping the sickest children in the north of South Africa. The Children's Hospital Trust has served on the Steering Committee for the new project and the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital has also assisted. It highlights the need for more facilities for children, and with over 50 years' experience, the Hospital has a special place and role working with those in Johannesburg.
Q. How do I contact the Poison Information Centre?
A. Should you have any queries please don't hesitate to call the paediatric Poison Information Centre at the Hospital on this 24 hour hotline: 021 689 5227.
If you have a question that hasn't been answered here please submit it now.
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