The Carte Blanche Making A Difference Trust (MAD Trust) is back at Sebokeng Hospital in Gauteng as a team of dedicated partners and staff work to create a Paediatric Lower-High Care Unit (aka Ward 3). Having built the current Infant High Care ward in 2016, the MAD Trust team is excited to provide a safe and caring space for both patients and healthcare workers to enjoy the best environment possible.
The past year hasn’t been easy as COVID-19 hampered progress and budgets. But that didn’t stop the MAD Trust from continuing in its work. Patron of the MAD Trust, Karolina Andropolous, says the project certainly had its challenges but, with this dedicated team and passionate staff, work on the brand-new ward is finally ready to begin. “This is an extraordinary project and doesn’t take just one person,” Andropolous said on the day the project was formally presented to stakeholders. ”We are nothing without the donors. They’ve given all their specialised skills toward improved healthcare for children.”
Speaking at the official presentation, Sebokeng Hospital CEO Mrs Makibiti Madolo said it exemplified “the true spirit of ubuntu” and emphasised the importance of public and private sector coming together to better serve communities. “It’s just wow! We feel encouraged because this will help us contribute positively to the community. Just being part of something positive makes us feel much better and gives us true purpose.”
FOR THE COMMUNITY
Initiated by the overflow from the neonatal unit, the new ward aims to expand the hospital’s original 6-bed high-care unit with an additional 8-bed facility which can provide support to both infants and adolescents. Principal donor South32 Corporate Affairs Specialist, Ezekiel Rampyapedi, expressed the importance of this project in aiding the community to access healthcare.
“We started planning about a year ago,” explains Sakhiwo Health Solutions Operations Director Benjamin Mokgothu. “We look forward to working with the community and the hospital and we are so excited and happy to finally be here and start building.”
Meanwhile, Arnold Gillespie of Spoormaker & Partners - the Carte Blanche Trust’s partner engineering firm - couldn’t hide his excitement. “It’s going to be great for the kids! It’s going to be much fancier and provide a proper facility for when these children get very ill.”
Speaking about the overall design of the ward, Hospital Design Group architect Danie Rossouw explained it was important to make the facility welcoming and uplifting while still offering state-of-the-art healthcare to the unit’s young patients. Most notable in the design were the large windows allowing sunlight to stream into the currently drab ward – something many attending the presentation eagerly commented on.
Addressing the stakeholders, Director and Project Quantity Surveyor from QS Bureau, Fritz Relling, reiterated the crucial importance of community involvement. “This project relies heavily on the community’s input and we aim to provide an opportunity for local businesses to contribute as much as possible to uplift them.”
Nursing Manager Kenneth Sejeng struggled to find the words to explain what this new ward would mean for the dedicated staff and the patients walking through the hospital’s doors on a daily basis. “I’m telling you, I’m very excited. This will go a long way in addressing our over-population problem. It will go a long way in lifting spirits. Everyone is excited and we wish it could just be done, that we could wake up tomorrow and the ward is there. This project shows us that someone appreciates what we do.”
While the physical building of the ward is important, it wouldn’t be much without much-needed medical equipment. Sebokeng Hospital’s Clinical Engineer: Donald Viljoen, the man responsible for all the high-end medical equipment, believes the MAD Trust’s latest project will make Sebokeng’s Ward 3 a facility to be proud of. “As far as I’m concerned, this will take it over and above what the private sector has to offer and places Sebokeng in a very good light. The community is struggling and this ward will go a long way to ensure the community gets the best care possible and what they deserve and expect.”
GO INSIDE
Take a virtual walk through the brand-new paediatric unit at Sebokeng below. The MAD Trust hopes to start laying the first bricks in May this year and aims to officially hand over the ward in October 2021.
Video supplied by Danie Rossouw: HDG Architect
Making A Difference in Sebokeng: October 2021
Updated on 10 October 2021.