Saving Soweto - 24 Hours of Trauma - 9 Jan 09 - Part 1

[virtualetude]

Did he just say 50-80 percent are HIV+ and have hepatitis? wow that's scary...and blood is everywhere

[josestafford]

Imagine being posted here, volunteering nursing services.

[cherubvid]

Ah, if only my maths skills were good enough so that I could become a Doctor, would love to go work at a place like this. Great series, respect from Cape Town.

[lungza]

the nurses and doctors are terrible in that hospital , If you really wanna die go to Baragwanath hospital!

[malaysiahantu]

may god bless all those dedicated people who helped others..

[tinimpajko]

now that is a miracle! i am speachless.

[coolcooper1971]

For all you do gooders who know nothing of S.Africa and who like to stick there nose in - The Whities did not do this to the blacks - They are managing to do it all on there own.

Don't blame the White South Africans for this....Blacks have managed to DESTROY another nation just like the rest of Africa.

[coolcooper1971]

You give Blacks a country to run and this is what happens, the rest of the world does not understand Africa.

I am NOT surprised at all - I lived 20 min from this hospital in Rosettenville - South JHB!!!! Saw my 1st murder at 9 years old.....and seen countless death over the years.

Well done UK and USA.....now you have a free South Africa.....You happy now.!!!

[imhotep1]

@coolcooper1971 Shut your Nazi dumb *ss up! If anything you should be glad we didn't have Nuremberg Trials for SS Hitler Nazis like you. South Africa is a country in transition just like Russia is. Violence is common in Russia just as much as South Africa, but South Africa is still a much cheaper place for Americans and those from Europe to retire.

[j5778]

Cernobe. you must be a bit stupid.

These doctors are brilliant. you are a moron.

[CERNOBE]

douchebag, eat my asshole you goddamn mongolian.

[j5778]

Get medical help quick. What type of name is Cernobe. the name for an Idiot. you pathetic piece of shit.

[victor720410]

thats sad looking at all those patients

[CERNOBE]

Wow, if I were one of those patients I would have punched Patrick out! What a major douche!

[Shellerjc]

have u eva worked in ER?

Dont make a comment unless u have.

Its a hard and very tough job- but had it not been for doctors like him, ,ost of us would be dead long ago

[CERNOBE]

Wrong! A lot of us are dead and dying because of arses like Partrick. Wake up!

[Shellerjc]

And I ask again - have you EVER worked in ER with too many patients and too little beds abd staff ??? Then tell me to wake up - Idiot = Patrick and his staff are doing what hey can with limiyed resources its not their fault the bloody governent has pocket most of the money. They are doing an impossible job and turning it into the bsest they can

You wake up !!!

[lrgower]

This film was amazing - all credit to the producers. A real insight to life in SA today.

[GROOVEY1969]

what a nightmare. how does the doctor handle it all.i was stressed just watching him go from one paitent to another.

[misstaut]

thanks a lot for showing, it serves as a good comparison to the hospitals and the rest of the world that i know. what a hell. respect for the team!!!

[cernobeisaknobjockey]

Cernobe "hails from the promised land, hates Islam and tortures Palestinians". His major interest is "PC gaming". Too inadequate to achieve anything in the real world he has turned to the less challenging and more accepting world of gaming. I'm sure Palestinian civilians are terrifeid by his bravery.

[paullucey]

shut the fuck up you stupid uneducated idiot, i'd like to see you deal with the shit patrick and the rest of the people have to deal with every day in that hospital, your not a "dick" Cernobe, your an ignorant prick

[CERNOBE]

Patrick is a total dick!

[Cernobeisacuntface]

They'll let you call yourself anything on this thing.

[trakkaton]

The Bara could be a fantastic hospital if people were able to change, to choose excellence, to try harder, to think, to try.

But in the end that's a problem with a lot of hospitals - worldwide.

And it's a problem of a lot of societies - worldwide.

If people would only at least try to do the right thing, to grow, to improve, not in a short-sighted "economic" or "religious" or any other hierarchical way, but as an independent free thinker and doer, then we wouldn't be in this ridiculous mess.

[cavemansouthafrica]

so who we going to vote for?

[msydo8301]

ResearchOdigo it has nothing to do with what i can contribute or not its about the government doing whats right with the people's money instead or endlessly renaming all this places and spending billions of the taxpayer's money,look at whats happening at TUT now?Its the very same Gov dat came wit da idea of da merger,Tech Pta was the best academic institution in da land and look where it is now? the sooner we stop denying things the better...gov has to look afta its people they are obliged to

[msydo8301]

Iv 2 agree Apartheid has nothing 2 do wit circus,if it were 4 apartheid den de wudnt be a Bara its apartheid dat built it,thats the problem with black we always go back to apartheid and blame things on it,we need to stop being in denial and start elevating the quality of life SA'n lives,none of the people in our government use these hospitals they have medical aid and go to pvt hospitalif they used them then we wouldnt be having such disgracing situations

[6btown9]

i lived in soweto for a few months in 2005. i went to baragwanath hospital once after i was in an accident...as soon as i walked in, i ::immediately:: turned around and walked out because there were so many bloody injured people...

[faithless78666]

aother reality is the restitutionary policies wrt to education at tertiary level. in fact its a bloody disgrace. if you white or Indian and wish to become a doctor @ a university there is a criteria & quota that you have to fulfill ito percentages to enter the institutions for whites and Indians its 91%?for blacks & coloreds its 70%? the quota keeps these nos under control,and blacks and coloreds just don fulfill the 70% criteria in the nos that the country needs.now SA has to import doc sad.

[faithless78666]

i agree with some of the comments apartheid has nothing to do with end of the month abuse of alcohol.reality a gov has failed its ppl by its controversial policies wrt doctors that were forced into community service and are seeking employment elsewhere, the brain drain in SA is very evident, it is a reality even in the forensics labs in SA that have approx 2ppl per province. crime escalates a snowball effect. reality bites. blame lies with those in power! they failed their poor dismally.

[louw12]

This has nothing to do with apartheid during those years the state hospitals was 100% good I was born in one had operations in one and today I dont want do be seen dead in one as it is a degrace, it is not only 'Bara' BUT all goverment hospitals in Sasolburg they have even dump the hospital waste on the dump INCLUDING dead fetuses of over 20 Weeks and they did not do anything about it IT IS NOT APARTHEIDS fauld BUT goverment that do not care!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[hmdewan]

This is the painful legacy of apartheid. And it is going to take alot longer than 15 years to redress the imbalances of the past.

[hmdewan]

SA a land of stark contrasts between the haves and have nots.If people can see the standard of care given to the middle class who can afford medical insurance, it can rival the best in the world.But the majority of SAn's, poor and downtrodden, mostly black, have to experience this type of care and facilities. I am a South African living in a middle class suburb and watching this documentary is as shocking and eye opening to me as Im sure it is to a foreigner watching it in Europe or America.

[Research0digo]

hmdewan

So - have you done anything about the overworked, crowed beyond belief, semi-squalid conditions, now that you are aware of them? Surely you have read SOME press about this hospital and it's shortcomings, somewhere??

Have you begun a campaign at your job to purchase just one ventilator? Shamed some manufacturing company into donating one?

[msydo8301]

I dont have to donate anything dear...my tax is enough every year i part with close to R100K and get a return of R2K,you see i do contribute so dont tell me this hogwash of donating things when my money is misppropriated by greedy bastards,who have corruption written all over their faces...Gov should start setting tangible and realistic goals with achievable milestones in that way we can see a real change,so ya ResearchO im still sticking to my guns....Gov has failed us...finish and klaar

[AR1552ar]

You pay taxes because you have to, and probably it is misused. But if you start donating money or anything else to these hospitals you know for sure it will end up in the right place.. I see it as a failure to collective responsibility if one does not try to help other people. I think we should forget about the past and work together to make life better for all of us. Life is hard enough without people making it even worse. (And that counts for all people, from all races)

[msydo8301]

Guys i think our government is letting us down,one would swear that bara is some jumble sale stall and not a hospital and the fact that a trauma ward closes,freaks me out,the next thing the very same gov has the decency of renaming major hospital when the money can be diverted to hospital that need the money,this is irritating i must say,our black people have failed us

[Research0digo]

mysdo8301

our black people have failed us

WHAT???!!!!!!

[msydo8301]

Yes black people have failed us,Im black and have to agree,ever since we came in power things have taken a turn for the worst im sure the whites are having a field day with this one....they have done good things as well whats the use if bad overshades the good......nothing

[garet300]

Same as New Orleans or Haiti

[garet300]

TNB

[flysouth1]

Strange - this was a perfectly good hospital under the'apartheid' regime - only under the African National Criminal government which took power in 1994 has it slid into the abyss!

[alternativeroute]

Under aprtheid 90% of state resources served 10% of the population. Pass laws kept black people from the cities. Not to dissimilar to the way Nazis kept jews in ghetto's... Is the ANC blameless? Definitely not. But you should atleast look at the facts and figures more carefully before you comment. Ignorance and racism go hand in hand.

[covertcovenant]

How about we spend more money on hospitals than the international war machine? Or is that just naive and stupid to think that way? Ought to unload the Cheney gang in Soweto for a weekend...

[Mxyzptlk562]

The truth is they would invest more money into hospitals only if it were a profitable enterprise. Have you not noticed that the Cheney gang are only in it for the money? You can put them in Soweto for however long as you would like, and just like in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, they will come up with a money making scheme that will benefit the rich at the expense of the poor.

[tafka100]

@covertcovenant

without wars medical technology would be nowhere near where it is and same goes for any other area of technology.

[covertcovenant]

@tafka100 I see....that is a very rational conclusion you draw, well let me propose one myself...how about your parents, or grandparents, or brothers and sisters, or children are killed in a war? Would you still feel it is necessary for technological advancement?

[tafka100]

@covertcovenant

its all subjecitve ofcourse.On a personal level it would be horrible but on a slightly less subjective level I would still understand that dying and natural selection is crusial and inevitable for the future survival of the species at least for the foreseeable future.And there will always be people who will use violence to get their way and sometimes it may be the only way to get justice.

[Dufflad101]

Good man Patrick and the other doctors and nurses are great too.

[DonnEdwards]

It seems the only "dumb bastards" are the ones leaving racist comments on YouTube, and of course the dumb bastards in government who don't care about the suffering in Soweto.

Strange bedfellows.

South Africa owes a huge debt of thanks and gratitude to the heroic nurses and doctors who care for these patients.

[acebodine]

heroic medical staff

[Shiftyeyes516]

Agreed! This is a sad situation - I guess this is democracy at its worst.