A nurse was assaulted at Johannesburg's Helen Joseph Hospital, the Gauteng health department said on Tuesday.
"The Gauteng health department has beefed up security measures at the
Helen Joseph Hospital following the brutal attack on a phlebotomist
nurse," spokesman Prince Hamnca said.
DA Gauteng health spokesman Jack Bloom claimed she was raped.
"I am horrified by the reported rape of a health worker at the Helen
Joseph Hospital last week on Friday evening," he said in a statement.
Hamnca could not be immediately reached to confirm this.
Bloom said: "The Gauteng health department has now confirmed this
incident, but only after the wide circulation of an anonymous sms that
claimed that the victim had died and management was covering it up."
Hamnca said the attacker was someone who got into the hospital. "The person has not been apprehended," he said.
The attack took place at the Wits University-controlled area in the hospital on Friday night.
The nurse works for the National Health Laboratory Service and draws
blood from patients. "The nurse... is recovering well and is expected to
be discharged soon," said Hamnca.
Security guards had been assigned to escort health workers around the
hospital. "The university has also changed locks and put measures in
place to ensure that their area is secured," said Hamnca.
The person has not been apprehended
The hospital had set up a committee to review the effects of the new
security measures. It would take into account the concerns raised by
staff and patients.
"A case has been reported to the South African Police Service and we
want the perpetrator to be apprehended and face the full might of the
law," Hamnca said.
Bloom said the department spent around R150 million a year on private security and should be held accountable for the assault.
"If they are not performing they must be fired. Staff and patients
need to know that safety is always a high priority," Bloom said.
The Star newspaper quoted an unnamed doctor as saying: "I just found
out that a staff member... had been raped, gagged, stabbed, beaten on
the fourth floor of the hospital. Management has been all quiet about
this and did not say much to people working night shifts."
A female staff member told the publication: "I am seriously
considering hiring personal security but that would have to come out of
my own pocket. It's a joke that I even have to think like this."
Another doctor said: "Unlike Charlotte Maxeke, which has guards on
every floor of every block, Helen Joseph only has a few on duty and it's
grossly inadequate."
Police spokeswoman Constable Mikateko Bila could not confirm the crime.
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