Limpopo Nurse Assaulted, Robbed And R@ped On Her Way To Work. A freshly hired Limpopo nurse was kidnapped, robbed, and r@ped on her way to work at Madumane Clinic in Tzaneen on Tuesday, according to sources.
The Democratic Nursing Organization of South Africa (Denosa) in Limpopo and Dr. Phophi Ramathuba, the province’s MEC for Health, both criticized the tragic situation.
Thilivhali Muavha, a spokesman for MEC, claimed that the nurse was supposedly taking a taxi from her house to the clinic shortly after dusk.
He said, “As it was dark, she allegedly requested the taxi driver to drop her at the clinic but the driver refused.
“A few moments after disembarking, an unknown man accosted her, dragged her into the bush where he assaulted and raped her before making off with her belongings. The victim managed to crawl to nearby households for help.”
Later, the nurse had surgery after being transported to the hospital with a broken leg. Such occurrences, in Ramathuba’s opinion, are a serious setback for the department’s efforts to have clinics open twenty-four hours a day.
“These issues of gender-based violence and rape are not only a terror for society, but they paint a bad picture of our province. At this rate, we will struggle to get skilled personnel to work in some of our facilities, because it will be seen as a big risk.
“We have just employed an army of nurses, with most placed in primary healthcare facilities with the intention to restore the 24-hour function, but issues of crime on healthcare workers have been a big threat.
“We condemn this act and call on community members to help the police arrest this criminal,” she said.
A fellow taxi passenger allegedly informed the nurse that he would follow her because he lives nearby after the driver refused to drop her off close to the clinic, according to Jacob Molepo, secretary of Denosa Limpopo.
“Not long after the taxi left them, the man allegedly advised that they take a ‘shortcut’ so they could get to the clinic quicker and avoid dangerous areas in the township.
“Unknowingly, the nurse followed the man who started dragging her to a dark spot where he raped her, assaulted her and took her belongings. He then fled,” Jacob said.
The nurse, who had a broken leg, reportedly dragged herself to the village and begged for help, according to Jacob.
When the nurse leaves the hospital, he asked that the department make sure she obtains psychotherapy. Jacob also pleaded with the authorities to get the investigation along quickly in order to find the culprit.
“Denosa calls on community members to start protecting the image of their community as this incident is likely to scare more nurses away from the facilities in the area.
“Already, there are many clinics that should be operating for 24 hours, but due to how dangerous the areas have become it is impossible to expose healthcare workers to the ruthlessness of criminals who rule the communities,” he said.
Attacks against nurses deny the community of healthcare services that it should have at all times, according to Jacob, he said, “The nurse concerned will be lost to the system, which means about 87 more patients daily may not get the services they would be getting in her presence.”
