Angry Station Hill Clinic patients – especially the elderly – have had enough of ongoing staff shortages and deteriorating infrastructure that are impacting on service delivery at the facility.
Concerned members of the community have been complaining for more than two years about the long queues and tardiness regarding the delivery of healthcare at the clinic without any positive feedback from the health department.
On Monday it was no different, with only one nurse on duty assisted by two volunteers, and a stand-in (roving) pharmacist summoned to help dispense medicines.
Station Hill community group chair, Nicolette Daniels, said positions had not been filled since crucial posts were vacated.
“One of the permanent nurses relocated to Cape Town and there is no permanent pharmacist stationed here. These two critical vacancies have not been filled and is causing huge backlogs at our clinic.”
She said many patients arrived as early as 6am – sometimes even earlier – at the clinic for scheduled visits only to be told to go home and return later for their medication.
“The only nurse on duty has to do admin work as well, which means most times patients wait very long and are asked to return later. And when it comes to having medicine dispensed, most times there is no pharmacist on duty and patients have to leave,” said Daniels.
“We are especially worried about high blood pressure patients and diabetics. On days like today they had to wait in this intense heat … just to be told to come back later. What if they suffer a stroke or faint?
When Talk of the Town arrived at the clinic the crowd had already thinned out but were told that it’s because the patients had been asked to return after 2pm.
A patient waiting with her child in the queue and who preferred to remain anonymous, said she had arrived early that morning for a scheduled visit.
“I am coming here a long time to this clinic and it’s an ongoing problem. I have been here quite early and I didn’t even eat because I rushed to the clinic. I am worried about the old people. This is really not acceptable; for example, there was an elderly man here this morning who soiled himself due to the long wait. A lot of older people go home without being seen to,” she said.
Daniels claimed many patients had in fact been at the clinic on Friday only to be told to return on Monday because a pharmacist was not available.
This reporter on walking through the cramped building noticed one sister on duty, two volunteers, a security guard and a (roving) pharmacist. There were a few patients waiting to be seen to. The one nurse on duty seemed under pressure responding that “we are not allowed to talk to media.”
Daniels said volunteers were having to assist the nurse who is having to do more than one task at a time.
“These volunteers aren’t qualified to do what nurses do – what if they make a mistake? Asked Daniels. The clinic is also being inundated with people from wards outside Station Hill who come here for treatment.
“We expect the department to do something about the building structure itself. It’s too small and unhealthy. Look at the yard here everything is overgrown.”.
District health department spokesperson Siyanda Manana highlighted overutilisation as one of the problems being experienced at Station Hill Clinic.
“While the clinic was established to serve ward 6 residents, patients from wards 7, 8, 9 and 10 do come to the facility for assistance. This in line with Batho Pele principles which promote access to services and patient choice without geographic restriction.”
He highlighted the steady increase in headcount from 8,856 patients in 2020/21 to 10,530 in 2025.
“We have now employed a doctor for the clinic and there will be replacement staff brought in … we are busy prioritising that and we are also putting more focus on non-clinical staff.” He said a clinic supervisor had retired in November and a doctor had resigned at the end of March last year.
He said a doctor employed from a ministerial project had assumed duties at the clinic on January 26 2026 (two days ago).
“Station Hill clinic is staffed with a pharmacist assistant and services are overseen by a roving pharmacist assigned at sub-district level,” said Manana.
Manana said daytime security had been improved to prevent incidents of vandalism.
However, some infrastructure damage (e.g toilet and electrical junction box) remain unresolved, adding that the matter had been escalated to the Facility management Unit.
Interim measures were being explored to ensure patient comfort while the department awaits capital investment.
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This article was first published in Talk of the Town, January 29, 2026. The newspaper serving the communities of Ndlambe and the Sunshine Coast, with a weekly wrap of Makhanda news, is available at stores from early on Thursdays
