Buthelezi Emergency Service contract not terminated

The Free State Health Department’s contract with private emergency medical service, Buthelezi, has not been terminated. This is according to the Free State Department of Health spokesperson, Mondli Mvambi. This is contrary to an internal memo dated 22 February, written by the Clinical Manager of Phekolong Hospital in Bethlehem, stating that Buthelezi services had been stopped with immediate effect. Mvambi called the circular erroneous. He says the ambulance service had not been phased out; in fact whenever patients need to be transferred from one facility to another for a higher level of care, the provincial control centre must be contacted to determine first whether a departmental ambulance is available, if one is unavailable then Buthelezi will be contacted to assist. OFM News reported last year that the Free State Department of Health had launched a tender process to procure a new private ambulance service. This after the department came under fire for paying millions to the current contractor – Buthelezi Ambulances. Olebogeng Motse/OFM News