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Innovation
From a temporary eight-bed paediatric ward to a state-of-the-art 15-bedded paediatric unit
Mediclinic Newcastle can now cater to almost double the number of young hospital patients. With an average 90% occupancy rate since the unit opened just over four months ago, the demand for, and value of, the unit is undeniable.
Understanding the need for a new paediatric unit
Offering specialised, family-centred paediatric care, the new paediatric unit at Mediclinic Newcastle is a significant upgrade that sets the hospital apart. The former paediatric ward changed locations multiple times over the years, says Mediclinic Newcastle paediatrician, Dr Eugene Govere. “During this time, it was restrictive in terms of capacity, and very often we’d transfer patients to provincial hospitals, including Ladysmith.”
Dr Mulalo Nepfumbada, also a paediatrician at Mediclinic Newcastle, says that this sometimes resulted in potential patients going directly to other hospitals as their parents were concerned that they would not find a bed. With limited local options, parents faced the challenge of having their children transferred to out-of-town hospitals, where there was no family to help them and no certainty around how long they’d be there.
“When a child is sick, you want to have people come and visit you, to get that emotional support,” Dr Nepfumbada says. Parents may also need to care for their other children. The financial implications of being transferred to a different town or city are also significant, as parents need to fund their own accommodation too and take time off work.
Expanding paediatric offerings at Mediclinic Newcastle
While support from other hospitals is still sometimes needed, expanding to a 15-bed, specialised unit naturally allows for greater capacity, necessitating far fewer patient transfers, less admission waiting time and greater patient and family satisfaction. “Our new unit is much better for the hospital and for the patients at large,” Dr Nepfumbada says.
The culmination of years of planning, the new state-of-the art unit also offers new monitors that run with specialised software, complementing laboratory software upgrades to ensure streamlined patient care with quicker test results. The nursing and medical staff are therefore also better supported through this upgrade, Dr Govere says, offering them greater convenience and confidence in managing patients.
What’s more, the unit is far more spacious than before, allowing patients’ privacy with 13 individual cubicles, a dedicated isolation unit and a private ward. Combined with multiple bathrooms and bright, child-centred interiors, the many advantages of the expansion are significant patient and parent drawcards and have boosted hospital scores.
Mediclinic Newcastle’s strategic, central location in Northern KwaZulu Natal also means that aside from patients in the immediate community, it also serves those in satellite towns across provinces including Mpumalanga and the Free State, boosting the hospital’s patient intake.
Common paediatric cases
The unit sees a variety of cases, with children often presenting with infectious diseases, which include vomiting, chest infections and so on, says Dr Govere, speaking of trends in terms of what conditions the unit commonly treats.
The autumn and winter seasons bring many respiratory illness especially respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) cases – a common airborne virus that infects the lungs and breathing passage, adds Dr Nepfumbada. Rotavirus, a gastrointestinal infection that mainly affects children, is also commonly seen.
“We also get neurological and surgical patients where we work with colleagues with different expertise inside and outside of the hospital,” Dr Govere continues.
In managing these and other new and ongoing cases, the new paediatric unit has translated to better satisfaction across the board, he says. “From the caregivers to parents to the patients themselves, it bodes well for the hospital.”