Another temporary hospital for COVID-19 patients is currently under construction in the Western Cape to help provide even more much-needed beds.
The Brackengate temporary Intermediate Care facility will bring an additional 330 beds when it opens. Construction is progressing and according to Premier Alan Winde, the facility will receive its first patients on July 7.
This facility joins the already opened Hospital of Hope at the CTICC, which currently has 862 beds and plans for over 800 additional intermediate care beds when it operates at full capacity.
Another temporary hospital at Sonstraal in the Cape Winelands is also under construction.
Current plans for additional beds will create over 1400 beds in the province, and the potential CTICC 2 project, which is currently in discussions, could see 800 or more beds set up, according to Winde.
“The public sector has an existing capacity of 2 162 acute beds, and an 1 428 additional care beds will be provided by temporary ‘field hospitals’ in the Western Cape, including the 850 additional beds at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, 330 beds at a temporary hospital facility in Brackengate, 68 at the Khayelitsha Thusong Centre, 150 at the Cape Winelands Sonstraal Hospital, and 30 additional beds at Tygerberg Hospital,” said Premier Alan Winde’s spokesperson Bianca Capazori.
Take a look at the Brackengate facility below:
The COVID-19 situation in the Western Cape has been much more severe than in other provinces. The Western Cape has 11 389 active cases of COVID-19, with a total of 30 249 confirmed cases and 18 103 recoveries as of June 7.
One of the challenges the Western Cape Health Department outlined to President Ramaphosa last week when he visited the province was the lack of healthcare staff and shortage of beds.
“The second challenge the province faces is the recruitment of health care staff for facilities and for additional beds. The Western Cape Government is able to source a total of 1477 healthcare workers – however, in order to meet all the staffing requirements for the potential CTICC 2 and to make up the shortfall created by absenteeism in the system, the Western Cape would require an additional 5 272 healthcare workers – with the biggest demand being for nurses,” said Winde in a statement on June 5.
Ramaphosa indicated that funding would be made available which will help secure the beds, staff and supplies needed to continue to provide the necessary facilities and care to those who need medical attention.
Also read: SA coronavirus deaths to reach 1000 this week
Pictures: Facebook / Alan Winde