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A beacon of hope at last?
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| Article Type: | Brief article |
| Subject: |
Political corruption
(Laws, regulations and rules) Government executives (Health policy) |
| Pub Date: | 05/01/2012 |
| Publication: | Name: South African Medical Journal Publisher: South African Medical Association Audience: Academic Format: Magazine/Journal Subject: Health Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2012 South African Medical Association ISSN: 0256-9574 |
| Issue: | Date: May, 2012 Source Volume: 102 Source Issue: 5 |
| Topic: | Event Code: 930 Government regulation; 940 Government regulation (cont); 980 Legal issues & crime; 970 Government domestic functions Advertising Code: 94 Legal/Government Regulation Computer Subject: Government regulation |
| Persons: | Named Person: Pillay, Siva |
| Geographic: | Geographic Scope: South Africa Geographic Name: Eastern Cape, South Africa Geographic Code: 6SOUT South Africa |
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| Accession Number: | 289216471 |
| Full Text: |
A small but luminous light is appearing on the horizon of South
Africa's perilous and corruption-tossed public healthcare ocean. If
tended properly it could prove a beacon towards which the entire
provincial health flotilla can navigate. The Eastern Cape is saving
hundreds of millions of rands annually (1) for two main reasons. First
is that its health chief, Dr Siva Pillay, refuses to be intimidated by
the money-grabbing pirates who thought they had the ship. He's got
them walking the plank one by one (1 200 so far), slowly rendering a
rickety vessel sturdier and more capable of delivering the health
services that its owners (the taxpayer) originally commissioned it for.
The other is that those in charge of the flotilla (read Health Minister
Dr Aaron Motsoaledi and Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan) noticed and
sent in the navy to help, piloting a new procurement and monitoring
system that will enable Pillay to identify weaknesses and corruption
icebergs--not to mention empower his counterparts in other provinces
when the scheme gets rolled out. Suddenly there's more bang for
buck. Whether the other provinces have leaders of similar commitment and calibre, an ingredient absolutely vital to making the scheme work, only time will tell. |
| Gale Copyright: | Copyright 2012 Gale, Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. |