Premier Alan Winde and Health Minister Zweli Mkhize at the temporary hospital established in the Cape Town International Convention Centre. (Supplied, Western Cape Government)
Supplied, Western Cape Government
- More than 200 patients have been admitted to the CTICC’s Hospital of Hope since it opened its doors 20 days ago.
- The province announced that 38 more people lost their lives due to the coronavirus, taking the total number of deaths to 1 775.
- As of 13:00 on Monday, the province had 61 445 confirmed cases, with 43 120 recoveries, according to Premier Alan Winde.
Cape Town’s “Hospital of Hope” at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) has received more than 200 patients since opening its doors 20 days ago.
In a first look inside the facility when it opened on 8 June, Western Cape MPL Ricardo Mackenzie tweeted a picture of the 862-bed facility steadily filling up with patients as more and more beds became occupied.
In his tweet, he warned the public to adhere to Covid-19 safety precautions to avoid being admitted to such a facility.
The facility was officially opened on 8 Jun and welcomed 10 patients on the same day.
By Sunday, 28 June, 20 days later, the venue had admitted 280 patients, with 249 already discharged.
The Western Cape has the highest number of Covid-19 cases and deaths in the country.
In a statement released on Monday evening, Western Cape Premier Alan Winde said as the province moves closer to the peak, the health department was recording over 1 000 new cases daily.
“The Western Cape has, as part of its Covid-19 preparedness strategy, built temporary hospitals which will increase the number of hospital beds available in the province.
“Work is well-underway at the Brackengate temporary hospital, and the 330-bed temporary hospital is on track to receive its first patients on 10 July.
“Much like the CTICC hospital, this site will provide intermediate hospital care to patients, and has been designed with infection prevention in mind – with a state-of-the-art waste management facility in place to destroy infectious waste,” Winde said.
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has been invited to visit the province on 1 July to be shown the facility before the hospital is fully functional and opens its doors, Winde said.
He said work was also ongoing at the Sonstraal facility in the Cape Winelands, with the first phase creating an additional 63 beds, and was set to start accepting patients this week.
“These are in addition to two already completed and functional facilities – the Hospital of Hope at the CTICC and the Thusong Hospital in Khayelitsha, operated by Medicins sans Frontiers, in partnership with the provincial government,” said Winde.
He also said 38 more Covid-19 related deaths had been recorded in the province. This brought the province’s death toll to 1 775.
As of 13:00 on Monday, the province had a total of 61 445 confirmed cases, with 43 120 recoveries.
*Note: Due to different reporting times, the provincial numbers will differ to the national numbers for given provinces by a few cases per day.
