Limpopo. Once a month, Neria Amon’s Grade 9 daughter misses school to accompany her mother and four-month-old twin siblings to Musina Hospital for their routine check-ups.

Amon, a single mother who survives on social grants, cannot carry both babies on her own.

She lives in Campbell township, about 10km from Musina Hospital.

More than two thousand people live in Campbell. There is no clinic in the township, forcing residents to leave their homes before sunrise to travel to the provincial hospital or other health facilities further away for basic healthcare, routine check-ups and chronic medication.

“Every time, I have to tell lies at school so that my Grade 9 child can assist me by carrying the other baby. We pay R60 for the whole journey, plus R100 for food for me and my Grade 9 child,” says Amon.

This means each routine hospital visit costs Amon about R160 for transport and food, while her daughter loses a day at school. The R640 monthly expense means less money available for essential household items for a family surviving on social grants. 

“If the clinic was in Campbell, I would not disadvantage my Grade 9 child. I would simply carry the twin babies to the clinic,” she says.

Amon says her daughter complains whenever she is asked to accompany her to the hospital.

Getting healthcare at night

Amon says the lack of a nearby health facility is even more difficult when her children become sick unexpectedly.

She tells Health-e News about an incident when both twins became ill late at night and she had to find transport to Musina Hospital.

“My twins once fell sick late at night. I had no option but to rush to get transport to Musina Hospital. Luckily, I quickly got public transport to the hospital,” she says.

Residents say poor mobile network coverage in parts of Campbell can also make it difficult to contact emergency medical services.

Norah Ndlovu, a community member who has served in various Musina community structures, says residents sometimes have to walk to areas with better cellphone network coverage to make an emergency call.

“If someone gets sick in Campbell and tries to call an ambulance, network coverage can be a challenge. They cannot easily get hold of ambulance services,” Ndlovu says.

Ndlovu says residents are also concerned about their safety when they have to head out late at night to make emergency calls.

“If someone gets sick at night, walking to an area with network coverage creates another challenge,” she says.

Up at 4am to collect medication

For residents who need regular medication, travelling outside Campbell brings additional costs and long hours away from home.

A 60-year-old Campbell resident, who does not want to be named, says she is being treated for high blood pressure and travels to Musina Hospital every month to collect her medication.

On collection days, she wakes at around 4am to catch the first public transport into town.

“I cannot leave around 6am because I will be served very late that day, so I have to wake up early to beat the queue. Although the work starts at 7am, I must be there early. I have to carry money for food because I know I will not be served early,” she says.

She spends about R30 on transport and takes another R50 for food, bringing the cost of collecting her medication to about R80 a month.

She says having a clinic in Campbell would save residents both time and money.

“If the clinic was in Campbell, I would not have to lose my sleep or buy food. I would rather ask a family member to prepare food for me and bring it to the clinic before I am attended to,” she says.

For Amon, healthcare closer to home would also mean her daughter could remain at school instead of accompanying her and the twins to their monthly hospital check-ups.

Residents want healthcare closer to home

Ndlovu says the community is frustrated by the lack of a permanent or mobile clinic.

“It is frustrating and disappointing. The department seems relaxed about even providing a mobile clinic to Campbell,” she says.

According to Ndlovu the municipal offices in Campbell have space that could potentially be used to provide healthcare services.

“I understand that there are municipal offices in Campbell that have space. I am not sure why the department cannot use some of the space for a clinic,” she says.

Provincial outreach has not reached Campbell

The Limpopo Department of Health runs a community-based outreach programme, Operation Bophelo Pele, aimed at bringing primary healthcare services closer to disadvantaged communities in remote and rural areas.

During a Bophelo Pele outreach programme in Lepelle-Nkumpi in March, Limpopo Health MEC Dieketseng Mashego acknowledged that many rural communities continue to struggle to access healthcare because of long travelling distances.

“This outreach programme is specifically designed to address these challenges by taking healthcare services directly to the people who need them most,” Mashego said.

Campbell residents who spoke to Health-e News say the outreach programme has not yet reached their community.

The Limpopo Department of Health was approached for comment on the lack of a permanent or mobile clinic in Campbell and whether there are plans to bring healthcare services, including Operation Bophelo Pele, closer to residents. The department had not responded by the time of publication.