Grey’s X-ray crisis leaves patients waiting as Health promises action

Patients who have travelled more than 100 kilometres to Grey’s Hospital for X-rays have been turned away after the facility’s X-ray machines broke down recently. The machines have been out of service for the past two weeks, prompting growing frustration among hospital staff, who say the situation is severely affecting patient care. Healthcare professionals at the hospital said that, as a referral facility serving patients from across KwaZulu-Natal, the equipment failure has disrupted essential diagnostic services for people referred from numerous healthcare facilities across the province.

All the machines are dead in the X-ray unit. We are told that there are no funds to fix the machines. This makes our work highly difficult and traumatic.

“Imagine having to tell a patient to return home because the machines are broken, or, for critical conditions, having to make them wait to be transported or sent to other medical facilities. “The most disturbing part in all this is that the department does not treat this crisis with the urgency it deserves,” said an employee. Another said many patients travel more than 100 kilometres from district hospitals and clinics because the referral hospital is expected to provide specialised care that is unavailable closer to home.

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“Without functioning X-ray equipment, patients may be forced to return home without a diagnosis, incur additional transport costs or endure long delays while waiting to be referred elsewhere. “For trauma patients, those with suspected fractures, chest infections or other conditions requiring urgent imaging, the disruption could delay treatment and increase the risk of complications. “The situation is particularly difficult for low-income families, elderly patients and those who rely on public transport, as repeated trips to the hospital may be financially and physically challenging,” said another healthcare professional.

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