Today, I want to speak to you about something that touches the core of humanity: the ability to move. Imagine for a moment not being able to walk freely, to enjoy the simple pleasures of mobility. It's a reality for millions worldwide, hindered by joint pain and mobility issues. However, there's hope, a beacon of light in the form of arthroplasty surgery, and that is why we are here today.
On behalf of the provincial government of KwaZulu-Natal and the people of this province, I wish to express our delight at being part of the launch of this life changing initiative. This is a partnership between the government of KwaZulu-Natal, through the Department of Health, Busa Med and Arthroplasty Solutions Trust.
This partnership will assist government to reduce the backlog of patients waiting for low-risk hip or knee replacement surgery. This is a physical expression of what we can achieve if we work together as government and the private sector, especially in the medical arena.
Such partnerships have positioned our province superior with Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central referral hospital being the first large-scale new hospital built in South Africa since 1994 to adopt a public/private partnership model for service delivery.
Today, life changing and revolutionary operations like cochlear implants, neurosurgery operations and orthopedic surgery take place here in Durban, at Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital. However, due to systemic challenges, we unfortunately find ourselves with this backlog, hence this partnership which we are witnessing today.
Programme Director, we meet here today to unveil a project which is going to give thousands of our people, literally, a leg up and a new lease on life to pursue their individual potential as members of society and contribute meaningfully to their communities.
It's not just about relieving physical discomfort; it's about empowering individuals to lead fuller, more engaged lives. Think about the young adults, sidelined by joint issues, who can now become economically active.
It is often said that the greatest wealth of any nation is its health. It, therefore, stands to reason that for any nation to make progress, and to fulfil its collective potential, all its people must enjoy good health to be able to contribute to the collective national effort.
As a country we take great pride in what we have achieved in rolling our health care to all South Africans in the past 30 years of the democratic dispensation, particularly in the public sector.
However, despite these achievements, the reality is that given the history of our country, while great progress has been made to roll out Universal Health Care, the public sector carries a huge burden compared to the private sector, owing to the fact that it is servicing more people.
As a result, there is a huge backlog in public hospitals when it comes to access to specialized health services such as hip and knee replacement. Currently, as we speak, thousands of our patients are waiting to have their hip and knee replacements done. I understand the current waiting list at Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central is 1 200.
The biggest contributing factor to this backlog is the limited theatre time at public hospitals, which limits the number of surgeries that can be done.
Now, let's shift our focus to communities where access to specialized surgeries like arthroplasty, is a distant dream. In these underserved areas, joint pain isn't just a physical burden; it's a barrier to economic participation. Imagine a breadwinner unable to work due to debilitating joint pain, trapped in a cycle of poverty with no means to escape. The ripple effects extend beyond the individual to families and entire communities, perpetuating a cycle of despair.
This partnership started on the 4th March 2024, after the Industrial Development Zone committed seed grant funding to enable the partners, KZN Department of Health, Busa Med and Arthroplasty Solutions to demonstrate and advance the value proposition potential of this project. To-date, approximately 10 people have benefitted from this partnership.
Here's where the power of compassion and generosity shines brightest. When skilled surgeons, led by Dr Ter Haar, offer arthroplasty surgery pro bono for our people, they're not just performing a medical procedure; they're igniting a spark of hope, catalyzing positive change from the grassroots level.
I am pleased to learn that surgery will be performed on at least two patients every week. Surgeries will be done for 50 out of the 52 weeks in a year, bringing the total of joint replacements done per year to approximately 100.
With each day that passes the waiting list grows rapidly, resulting in patients suffering from advanced degeneration of their joints. This is an untenable situation which calls for drastic action.
We note that the global fee to do a hip or knee replacement in the private sector could set one back over R153 000. Through this project there will be about 44% reduction which is about R 85 000. Yes, it is a huge drop, but it still stands way too high and out of reach of millions of our ordinary people. We need more partnerships to make sure that this life changing surgery is reduced further or is free. More private sector needs to come on board. There are still too many people who are excluded.
We wish to applaud Dr Ter Haar and partners, and Busa Med for its ingenuity and creativity in working with the public sector to ensure that this project comes to fruition. Special credit goes to the Founder of Busa Med, Dr Mji, for being a catalyst for this project and for championing it.
As all of us know, Dr Mji is not only a trailblazer as a doctor and a businessman who has carried the torch of excellence in the medical arena, but he is also a national treasure that we hold dear in this province. By working on this project, he has once again shown that being public-spirited and running a viable business enterprise are not mutually repellent.
By pioneering such an initiative, the partners have, in no small measure, revolutionalised the provision of health care by showing that, in line with the spirit of humanity, it is easy to achieve the objectives of social solidarity, and provision of quality healthcare, while also maintaining an efficiently run institution. After all, despite the boundaries of gender, race, creed, and class, we have one humanity.
This also shows that when we work together as the public and private sectors, we can achieve a confluence of new possibilities not only in the health sector. Pointedly, we hope that this cooperation will inspire other health service providers in the private sector to follow suit and explore how we can strengthen partnerships.
As I conclude, as an ANC-led government, we are proud have completed a multi-billion-rand 500 bed Dr Pixley Ka-Isaka Seme Memorial Hospital in KwaMashu- a first mega project contract handled and managed internally by the Department of Health Infrastructure. This facility is right in the heart of the township and will service over 1, 5 million people of Phoenix, Inanda,Ntuzuma and KwaMashu
I want to applaud this project for being a beacon of hope and inspiration. This project is a game changer because it is aimed at collapsing the walls of social and economic disparities that have created a two-tier health system in our country.
It is an inspiration because it shows that there is hope for a better future for humanity. We owe it to future generations to use the momentum created by this project to build a better future for all the people of the province and the world.
Arthroplasty surgery isn't just about replacing joints; it's about restoring dignity, unlocking potential, and fostering inclusivity. It's about recognizing the inherent worth and agency of every individual, regardless of their circumstances.
Congratulations on this partnership which the KwaZulu-Natal Government supports.
I THANK YOU