Today, we cautiously but optimistically breathe a sigh of relief as we continue to see our detected cases, hospital admissions, deaths and even excess deaths declining. Our recovery rate is now almost at 90% and our mortality rate has remained stable at around 2% #SPNPConference
Mothers affected by COVID-19 have given birth to healthy babies. They are breastfeeding and physically bonding with their children, laying foundations for wholesome upbringing and solid building blocks for a healthy and prosperous society. #SPNPConference
These Herculean achievements have been possible because of the passion, dedication and sheer diligence of our nurses and midwives. #SPNPConference
We thank you for braving the threat of being infected yourself, and even of death. To date, over 31,000 health care workers, many of them nurses and midwives, have contracted Coronavirus and we have tragically lost 240 colleagues. #SPNPConference
May I convey my heartfelt condolences for the loss of your co-workers, friends, family and loved ones.#SPNPConference
By shining a spotlight on the state of Nursing and Midwifery, the WHO catalysed a series of events to galvanize worldwide action for focused and purposeful health systems strengthening through fortifying human resources for health. #SPNPConference
In December last year I had the privilege of launching the #NursingNow campaign- a three year campaign initiated by the global nursing community with the sole objective of improving health care delivery to our people. #SPNPConference
To recap, the five key areas focus for the #NursingNow global campaign are:
• Ensuring that nurses and midwives have a more prominent voice in health policy-making
• Encouraging greater investment in the nursing workforce;
(Continued...)
• Recruiting more nurses into leadership positions;
• Conducting research that helps determine where nurses can have the greatest impact and
Indeed, these key focus points align perfectly with the objectives of the Presidential Health Compact, The Quality Improvement Plan and, ultimately, the National Health Insurance.#SPNPConference
I must congratulate the provinces for collectively employing 13 135 nurses across the categories during this time. Now that they have proven that it is possible to achieve such numbers in such a short space of time. #SPNPConference
The Department of Health will very soon publish the STRATEGIC DIRECTION FOR NURSING EDUCATION AND PRACTICE which outlines a roadmap for strengthening nursing and midwifery in South Africa for the next five years.#SPNPConference
I am pleased to say that much work has been done to promulgate and subsequently proclaim various sections of the Nursing Act. #SPNPConference
I with to express my humble gratitude to the nursing community for making my job easier as Minister of Health. I want assure you that I share your aspirations of a better world through the work that we do to secure a healthy population for quality of life and prosperity for all.
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I thought about this day many times and wished it would never come or at least not now!!
Remembering the first day we went as team led by Nxamalala in 1994 as the 3 newly appointed ANC MECs in Kzn
We reached NND around 22:00
Isilo came out of kwaKhangela Palace opened his arms and said “welcome home” and gave loud laugh as we were ushered in
We had dinner at 01:00 and toured all palaces waking up the oNdlunkulu to greet and we left Nongoma 06:30.
As we joined caucus in legislature in Pietermaritzburg at 11:00, we were still in disbelief of the night gone by as we gave the account to our comrades.
The government’s process of procuring vaccines preceded the discovery of the 501Y.V2 variant and other variants. #VaccineRolloutSA
Before the efficacy results, SA could not delay receipt of the vaccine batches to await the results of the efficacy studies by our scientists, as this would have relegated the country to the back of the line for vaccines due to global shortage of supplies. #VaccineRolloutSA
There are concerns in the public domain about the expiry date of the received AstraZeneca vaccine batches (30th April 2021).#VaccineRolloutSA
We have always said the second wave is going to be coming and the only way we will be protected is by developing herd immunity through vaccination. #VaccineStrategy
The only way of being able to deal with the #COVID19 pandemic is the provision of immunity through vaccination. We have been trying to follow what the best way is to deal with this. #VaccineStrategy
The vaccines will need to be made available quickly so that most of our citizens are
covered by the end of the first year of rollout - this year. #VaccineStrategy
28 469 South Africans are known to have succumbed to COVID-19 this year- amongst those were 436 public health care workers who paid the ultimate price in the frontline. #NYECandleLighting
Our health care workers continue to bravely fight this war even though they have been pushed beyond their call of duty. #NYECandleLighting
But we must remember that as the rate of transmission rises so too do the infections amongst health care workers rise. To date, we have recorded a cumulative 43 124 health care workers who became infected with #COVID19. #NYECandleLighting