Bedridden Elvis Mahlangu has been fighting for an appointment for an MRI scan for over a year.

The 48 year old father of three from Khayelitsha in KwaMhlanga, Mpumalanga says he lost the use of his legs after he visited  KwaMhlanga Hospital in 2019, due to suffering from urine blockage. 

 “When I got to the hospital I was first injected in the arm and then in the spinal cord as doctors said they wanted to run tests. I was diagnosed with spinal tuberculosis (TB),” he says. The National Institute of Health describes spinal TB as an extrapulmonary form of TB caused by Mycobacterium TB. 

“I stayed at the hospital for six days and when I  was discharged I could not feel my legs. The doctors said I was going to be fine. I was given six months of medication to treat the spinal TB. However, even after six months I still could not walk. In 2020 I was transferred to Witbank Provincial Hospital but the doctors could not see what was wrong with me,” he says.  

In March 2023, doctors at Witbank Hospital conducted a CT scan, a diagnostic procedure that produces images of the inside of the body. 

“They could not see anything and said I needed an MRI scan ( a detailed, cross-sectional image of internal organs and structures). They said they were going to book me for an MRI scan but after that they were quiet. My life has not been easy as I am stuck in this bed”, he says. 

Public patients sent to private hospitals

According to Jane Sithole, the DA spokesperson on health in Mpumalanga, the Provincial Department of Health advertised a tender for the provision of MRI Services for Rob Ferreira, Witbank, Ermelo and Themba Hospitals in 2020. 

She says it seems that the Mpumalanga Department of Health has not made MRI machines a priority. 

“For years now the provincial health department have been acting like they are doing something about the matter of acquiring MRI and radiology services, but nothing comes out of it. We have been inundated with calls from doctors in the public health sector across the province stating that without the essential MRI scanners, they are unable to diagnose complicated medical conditions early and  prevent early treatment and ultimately the loss of life. Public doctors must rely on X-ray machines which may sometimes not be accurate in picking up the seriousness of injuries in patients involved in car accidents,” she says.

Sithole says patients are sent to the private health sector. “The department is responsible for the payment because poor people can’t afford to do an MRI at a private hospital at R12000,” she says. 

The Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (Denosa) provincial secretary, Cyril Mdhluli says the province’s two tertiary hospitals, Rob Ferreira Provincial Hospital situated in Nelspruit and Witbank Provincial Hospital do not have MRI machines. 

“In Rob Ferreira Hospital they have never had an MRI machine. As a result patients needing the services are taken to Medi-Clinic. In Witbank Hospital the MRI is currently not working and they use Life Cosmos Hospital,” he says.

When Health-e News heard about Mahlangu’s predicament, we approached the Mpumalanga Health Department to intervene. Witbank Provincial Hospital then booked Mahlangu an MRI appointment at Life Cosmos Private Hospital to understand what could be wrong with his legs. 

Health-e News is in the position of his appointment receipt, which is booked for 1 May.

Mahlangu, desperate for an answer, is relieved he’ll finally get the MRI scan.

“At least I will know what went wrong with my legs. Life has not been easy for me as we now survive on my children’s government grant,” he says. 

No clear answers from Mpumalanga Department of Health

The Mpumalanga Health Department failed to respond to Health-e News questions on the lack of MRI machines in the province. It could not comment on how much it spends sending patients who need MRI scans to the private sector. 

Instead the department said Mahlangu was brought into KwaMhlanga Hospital casualty accompanied by his relatives and was never seen walking by himself. 

Provincial Health spokesperson Dumisani Malamule says Mahlangu was seen by the doctor and diagnosed with neck stiffness, and chronic conditions that cannot be disclosed due to patient doctor confidentiality.

“He was referred to physiotherapy and an occupational therapist for neurodevelopment. A psychotherapy was conducted on 19 August 2021 for the patient and his wife. The hospital will continue with his treatment and strengthen the importance of explaining to the patient about his condition,” Malamule says. –Health-e News