Western Cape: Medical safety compliance a priority

The DA in the Western Cape welcomes the efforts of the Provincial Hospitals and all healthcare facilities in the Overberg on the handling and storage of medical waste.

In my capacity as the Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Environmental Affairs in the Western Cape Provincial Parliament, taken the initiative to ensure that the committee focuses on a number of programmes laid out in the Departments Annual Performance Plan and chief among them is Programme 3, which deals with waste management. The programme sets out the regulations for compliance and enforcement in this area.

The Economic Cluster conducted an oversight visit to the Caledon Provincial Hospital and were briefed on the facilities handling and storage of all medical waste produced at the facility. The briefing revealed that the Caledon health facility complies with all regulations in terms of handling, storage, transportation and disposal of medical waste as enforced by the Western Cape Health Care waste, Act 7 0f 2007 as well as the Western Cape Health Care waste management regulations act 73 0f 2013.

It is the mandate of the Department of Environmental Affairs to provide compliance support to the Provincial Department of Health on the handling and disposal of medical waste.

Furthermore, the Department of Environmental Affairs in terms of their responsibility, provides compliance assistance relevant to their support function in all areas of Waste management. It is our intention to ensure that all health facilities in the Overberg district comply with all regulations with respect to waste management in order to ensure that the people in those areas not placed at risk.

The DA in the Western Cape is committed to increasing wellness and safety while also creating healthy environments for the people of the Western Cape