She visited the Magwa clinic in Lusikisiki every month for her antiretroviral treatment and had been complaining about pain in her feet, which is a common side effect of d4t.

Early in the year blood samples were taken and it was decided that she should go over to another treatment, TDF, but for some reason the nurses at the clinic kept on giving her d4t.  When she asked why she can’€™t go on to  TDF she was told to consult a doctor at the St Elizabeth hospital.

She was given her file and took a day off work and went to the hospital. “Though I was given my file, sister did not give me a referral letter. And when I arrived at the hospital they needed a referral letter from Magwa clinic that was not there.

‘€œThe nurse just wrote my next date and when asked about being changed to TDF, she told me to consult Mrs Ngqoseka from the clinic. When I  went back to  her, she shouted  at me, did not check my clinic card nor even have a look at the blood results and told me to go to hospital”.

“Because I know my rights I decided to go to Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) and asked for their assistance,” she said. The TAC immediately called Mrs Ngoqoseka and asked about the referral letter. She replied by saying the patient should come back for a referral letter, but said that TDF is currently out of stock, but that she is expecting it to be delivered the next week.

 When asked about the delay in changing the patient to TDF, she said: “I did not take her case as a matter of urgency, but we were still treating her. I am sorry and she will be switched to TDF”.

TAC administrator Nombeko Gqamane told OurHealth: “This clearly shows that staff have bad attitudes and are not caring for patients. This lady had to be absent from work for two consecutive days for something that could have been sorted out during the first day of her visit”. When asked what maybe the cause of these attitudes, Gqamane commented:  “Among other things, clinics are understaffed, long queues and shortage of medicines. Something has to be done to avoid these cases”.

The following week OurHealth paid a visit to Goso Forest, Qaukeni and St Elizabeth Hospital (SHE) Gateway clinics. The patients there said that nurses often shouted at them, they are very slow when providing health services. ‘€œI am pissed off because I arrived at the clinic at 08:00am but at 10:00am they told me to go home when they took their tea time,” said Nomawethu Mtuntuto a 50-year-old man from Joe-Slovo Park, who went to SEH Gateway clinic.

“I visited SEH Gateway clinic for my tooth to be taken out. I was told to go home because they said they only take ten people a day. And I was not even given pain tablets. They told me to buy pain tablets in a pharmacy, but I don’€™t have money. I have lost hope because the nurses have a negative attitude at this clinic,” said Nontlahla Mzobotshi, a 32-year-old from Mthimde location.

Mazulu Manci, a 47-year-old from Tshonya location told OurHealth: “I visited Qaukeni clinic to immunize my child and get some pain tablets for my headache.  My daughter was vaccinated, but they told me there are no pain tablets, and also no brufen, worm go and Depo-Provera injection for family planning.’€

Tandeka Vinjwa-Hlongwane is an OurHealth Citizen Journalist reporting from Lusikisiki in the OR Tambo health district in the Eastern Cape