Karabo Rammutla
Flashy new signs were erected around the Helen Joseph Hospital in Johannesburg as part of renovations.
But patients hoping to find palliative care, or the anaesthetics ward, were in for a shock.
The signs were littered with glaring spelling errors – so that patients are instead sent to “palliance care” and “anaestheasia”.
Even those looking for a bite to eat at the dining hall weren’t safe, as the sign read “dinning wall”.
The renovations were undertaken after a devastating fire burnt down two rooms in 2015.
The signs prompted some memorable responses on social media, with one Twitter user writing, “My daughter who is in grade 7 saw the errors while we were at the hospital. I’m sure she can beat many who work at this hospital at a spelling bee. This shows how morale is low among staff. I would have been embarrassed if I worked here.”
The DA’s Jack Bloom, who is the party’s shadow health MEC, didn’t find the signs funny.
Shortly after they came to light, Bloom put official questions in the provincial legislature to the Gauteng Health Department.
He said he asked the MEC to indicate which company did the signage and what process was followed in appointing this company.
“If it was a quote process, what were the companies that gave quotes and how much in rands and cents were each of these quotes, why were these companies chosen to give the quotes, who chose the company that did the signage and why were these mistakes made?” he asked.
Gauteng Department of Health spokesperson, Motalatale Modiba, said the sign boards were put in a few weeks ago and were immediately taken down and replaced.
