Gauteng Health admits it does not routinely screen nearly 40,000 child-facing staff for sex offences

The Gauteng Department of Health has admitted it does not routinely screen staff against key child protection registers, leaving tens of thousands of health workers who deal with children unchecked. The admission, given in a written reply by Health MEC Faith Mazibuko, was made in response to a question tabled in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature by DA education spokesperson Michael Waters, MPL.

Who was not screened and what the department checks

The department said it employs approximately 39 653 people in critical posts, many of whom have direct or indirect contact with children in hospitals, clinics, school health programmes and community outreach services. Despite this, the department confirmed checks against the National Register for Sex Offenders (NRSO) and the National Child Protection Register (NCPR) are not part of routine employment procedures.

Mazibuko’s reply states the department uses the 360 DOTS vetting verification system for standard pre-employment checks. According to the reply, the system covers:

• Home Affairs verification
• Financial checks
• Citizenship verification
• Social media screening
• Criminal records
• School and higher-education qualification verification

The department said most of these checks are processed immediately or within 48 to 72 hours. It also acknowledged it currently “relies on criminal background checks conducted through the 360 DOTS system” and that “no additional internal vetting or monitoring mechanisms have been implemented beyond this process.”

Political reaction and legal context

DA MPL Michael Waters publicly warned the lack of routine checks was a threat to child safety.

“These are sick children in hospital wards, toddlers in clinic waiting rooms and teenagers receiving school health services, all relying on a system that has not done the most basic checks to protect them from potential predators,”

Waters said in the source material.

The source notes that the Children’s Act 38 of 2005 and the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act 32 of 2007 impose legal obligations on employers to screen individuals working with children against child protection registers. Mazibuko’s reply acknowledged the department’s reliance on HR verification processes and professional registrations but did not confirm full compliance with those legislative requirements.

Department response and planned changes

Mazibuko said appointments are not confirmed until the required vetting results are received. She also said that all employees at the department’s crèche are vetted in collaboration with the Department of Social Development.

The reply included a commitment that the institution “will put in measures to ensure all staff, clinical and non-clinical, are vetted by September 2026” and that the department “will develop a system to ensure that all the staff members appointed and will be working with children are vetted in line with the applicable legislation.”

At the time of the response, the department said only three individuals at Tembisa Hospital were actively undergoing vetting, with results expected within 72 hours. The department stated there were no delays or backlog in its vetting process.

DA demands and next steps called for

The DA has called on the Gauteng Department of Health to take several actions, including:

• Implement mandatory NRSO and NCPR checks for all staff working with children
• Conduct a full audit of all child-facing posts
• Publicly disclose how many employees have never been screened
• Set a clear compliance timeline and report publicly on corrective action taken

Waters said the department’s statement that it will create a vetting system was “effectively an admission that it currently lacks an adequate system that is compliant with the legislative safeguards designed to protect children,” according to the source material.

What remains unclear

The department’s reply and the reporting in the source do not provide a full breakdown of which posts have never been screened or a precise count beyond the approximate figure of 39 653 people in critical posts. The department also did not confirm in the reply that its current processes meet the full requirements of the Children’s Act and the Sexual Offences Act.