An update from Sister Mchunu
14 July 2025 | Shannen Harte
We have seen a lot of nasty influenza with the change of season and Winter approaching. There are many patients with chest infections, especially children, that, if left untreated, will almost certainly result in the child going to hospital. It is important that we identify these cases early before it gets to that point. Those who suffer from Asthma are also at risk with the change of season. We are making sure that we are screening our children and keeping up with weekly health assessments to avoid illness and take precautions where necessary. There are a lot of childhood illnesses that can be prevented with the right measures in place.
We are also encouraging patients and even staff to get flu vaccinations as we did in the previous year. With Winter approaching we also expect to see more burn victims, as unfortunate as this is, when the weather is colder, more fires are built for warmth and more accidents can happen. I recently saw a little girl with severe burns on her buttocks from bumping into a pot of hot water, this is often because of small living spaces, which creates more dangers in the home, especially when cooking with fire and having children around. The little girl initially spent two weeks in hospital because of the severity of the burns. Once discharged, we tended to the wound care three times per week in our clinic, which we are happy to report has completely healed. The mother of the child specifically requested that we do the wound care as she knows and trusts our team to look after her child, which was very humbling.
Overall, we are managing to treat as many as we can and feel prepared for the flu season ahead, we continue to do our best with what we have.
