Hospitals exempted from blackouts as Health Department looks to set up solar power

2 min read
29 November 2022 | 14:00 CAT

The Health Department has announced that five more hospitals are now exempt from loadshedding after a public outrage sparked fears over patients’ health risks.

Photo by: Gallo Images

This comes as officials from the National Health Department said they are conducting a study on the roll-out of solar panels at healthcare facilities.

According to the health department, this project collaborates with scientists from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research.

Department of Health spokesperson Foster Mohale said this is to mitigate the impact of load shedding by reducing hospitals’ backup generators.

“This is a work in progress, and the inclusion of the North West facilities is part of the commitment made by the minister of health Dr Joe Phaahla that no province will be left behind,” he says.

Meanwhile, the department has given Eskom a list with over 200 priority hospitals to possibly be expemted from power cuts at a phased approach.

“Although due to technical challenges some of the hospitals across the country will take time to be exempted,” said Mohale.

Currently, the total number of public health facilities unaffected by loadshedding is 77.

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