Hard work and dedication of two senior staffers of the Eastern Cape Department of Health paid off when they were named South Africa’s best COVID-19 healthcare worker, and won the silver award in the best doctor of the year categories on March 24.
Amathole District health manager, Sindiswa Gede and Stutterheim Hospital CEO, Dr Mzekelo Godongwana, walked away with the prestigious national Batho Pele Service Excellence Awards, after the department had made a clean sweep at the provincial awards at the end of February.
Gede, who also received a certificate of appreciation from President Cyril Ramaphosa in November 2021 for her contribution in the vaccination campaign, was named the best COVID-19 healthcare worker for the 2021/22 financial year by Public Service and Administration Minister, Ayanda Dlodlo, while Godongwana was officially named as one of South Africa’s best doctors.
The awards are aimed at encouraging continuous performance improvement and promoting professional and productive public service that delivers quality public services.
This is a way to reward and acknowledge public servants who are performing beyond their call of duty, and to encourage excellence in the public service.
Eastern Cape Health MEC, Nomakhosazana Meth, congratulated the two.
“Gede and Dr Godongwana are the epitome of what civil servants should be. Together with their teams, they ensured and continued to ensure that they carry their daily duties with diligence and care daily.
“We are proud of their achievements, as they show that despite all the challenges, there are many things that we are doing right.
“We are hopeful that their recognition will serve as a motivating factor to their colleagues, who we are confident will continue to go above the call of duty in pursuit of quality health and care for everyone,” Meth said.
Gede said what made her work easier was creating an environment where everyone was happy and able to showcase their skills.
“Being a district manager never detached me from my profession as a nurse. It is not unusual for me to get into a ward and roll up my sleeves. Everyone in Amathole has one goal – that we are here to ‘promote health, preserve life and heal the sick’ from the security at the gate to the district management team,” she said.
Godongwana said he was honoured to be recognised for his work.
“There are many doctors in South Africa who are working very hard to serve poor communities in the deep rural areas that were previously disadvantaged, who also feel that their efforts are not noticed.”
“This award from the minister will change this narrative. It will give them hope that their efforts are also being noticed by our leaders. It is real a great honour for me and my team at Stutterheim Hospital,” he said.
