Photo: Ivan Naude/M-Net
KIMBERLEY. - I attended the official opening of the brand-new, state-of-the-art BHP Billiton Paediatric Care Unit at the Kimberley hospital made possible through South Africa's premiere investigate journalism magazine show, Carte Blanche on M-Net.
Carte Blanche's Making a Difference campaign that was started to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the longrunning TV show, aims to raise funds to improve health care equipment, infrastructure and technology at South African state hospitals that desperately need it. The opening of the BHP Billiton Paediatric Care Unit at a cost of R5 million at the Kimberley hospital in the Northern Cape province is as stunning in its design, functionality and amazing refurbishment as it has been in it's creation (just 9 weeks of construction).
''When we originally came up with the Making a Difference campaign to celebrate 20 years of Carte Blanche, no-one realized that it would grow to the level that this has,'' George Mazarakis, executive producer of Carte Blanche told me.
About the new BHP Billiton Paediatric Care Unit he says, ''This has been a spectacular experience. We've been dealing with hospitals in five different cities, 6 hospitals, and we haven't had this kind of experience with anybody.''
For more photos of the new unit, what the Northern Cape premier, M-Net's CEO and other have to say, click on READ MORE below!
It was a very emotional (and happy) day for me to attend the opening of the new BHP Billiton Paediatric Care Unit in Kimberley hospital. As a journalist you try not to get emotionally moved by what you see, but being in that new ward, with 6 very ill little children and their mothers was very emotional. Even Carte Blanche presenter Bongani Bingwa got a bit emotional as he visited the children bed by bed.
Photo: Ivan Naude/M-Net
''We owe a big debt of gratitude to all of you and the sponsors for having the confidence in us, said George Mazarakis, Carte Blanche executive producer when he talked at the official opening about how Carte Blanche's Making a Difference campaign is helping to change public health care in South Africa. Carte Blanche initially aimed to raise R20 million to put to medical infrastructure support in the country, and has since surpassed that by millions more.
Of the Kimberley hospital management George Mazarakis said they've been ''very forthcoming, you’ve delivered on time, you’ve handled a phenomelal steering committee phenomenally well and we're immensely grateful to you. It's been superlative.''
''We came down here and we met an angel - and archangel - in the form of dr. Pieter Jooste who is a remarkable man. For a very long time he's been the only paediatrican in this province. His staff adores him and he's done remarkable work. He took us to this derelict ward and he showed us this place that he thought had the potential to become something special - and he allowed us to make it happen with the able assistance of dedicated workers and sponsors. None of this would have been possible without the Making a Difference Trust and the support of M-Net who has come to the party in a really big way,'' George Mazarakis said.
Photo: Ivan Naude/M-Net
M-Net's CEO, Patricia Scholtemeyer also flew in for the official opening. ''It's very special to me,'' she said. ''When I heard about what is happening in Kimberley hospital I felt compelled - and especially because it a paediatrician ward - that I had to come. At M-Net we do care and we're very proud of Carte Blanche and what Carte Blanche is doing. And to the contractors - and I believed all of this happened in a record 9 weeks - it's a really very, very special day for me and I'm really pleased to be here.''
Mr Gordon Mancho, CEO of the Kimberley hospital said this was a ''different'' experience. ''We got the chance to choose and contribute. This is unique because the donors listened to our needs and what we wanted.''
Every patient in the refurbished ward gets their own television. As you can see from the pictures, everything is bright, breezy with an airy, uplifting atmosphere. The doctors have access to a big wall-unit internet screen where they can access the web and pull up complete patient information at the touch of a button.
Colourful Donald Duck patient files are everywhere. There's even a new tea room for the staff as well as a consultation room for the doctors and nurses.
And the tired mothers get to sit next to their very ill children and hold their hands, but from the comfort of big black leather lazy chairs next to each bed.
''We're celebrating another milestone in health care delivery in the Norther Cape,'' Ms Hazel Jenkins, premier of the Northern Cape said. ''I praise the efforts of Carte Blanche and BHP Billiton for improving our province's health care system. Mr Mancho is one of the people in this province doing us proud and dr Jooste is somebody who really shows he cares. Kimberley hospital is only complex with a paediatric care unti in the vastness of this province - just think how far people have to travel. The refurbishment as part of Carte Blanche's campaign is a positive step for revitalizing the health care system in our province.''
