Richard Lebethe has been appointed to lead Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital as its acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) with immediate effect.
Lebethe’s appointment follows serious allegations levelled against several officials including the Deputy CEO, by labour organisations at the hospital.
At the time of his appointment, Lebethe was serving as the Deputy Director-General for Clinical Services.
“The Gauteng Department of Health has appointed Deputy Director-General for Clinical Services, Dr Richard Lebethe to the facility to act as CEO with immediate effect.
“Dr Lebethe will be holding the fort until the finalisation of the ongoing investigations of the allegations raised by respective labour unions at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital and the imminent appointment of a permanent CEO,” the department said.
Head of department, Mkhululi Lukhele, said the allegations made are being taken seriously and to this effect, the department instituted an independent investigation to ensure the process is fair and transparent.
The department said while it welcomes engagement to resolve the labour issues, it has invoked a court order to stop the disruption of services.
“Whilst the department remains committed to engage with all stakeholders and to resolve their concerns in an amicable manner, it has invoked the final court order to put a stop to ongoing disruption of essential services to patients and allow the investigating team space to conduct its work without any disruptions,” it said.
Filling of vacancies
While the department looks to fill the CEO vacancy, it noted strides made in filling other vacant posts.
“From January 2018 to date, the hospital has made substantial improvements in the filling of vacant positions. Through the assistance of the post filling committee which ensured that post filling prioritises critical services and is within the allocated compensation of employees’ budget, Chris Hani Academic Hospital has already filled 505 such posts,” it said.
The breakdown is as follows:
- Administration: 10
- Allied Professionals: 93
- Medical: 297
- Nursing: 93
- Support 12
-SAnews.gov.za
