Gauteng rolls out measures to cut paediatric surgery waiting times at CMJAH

The Gauteng Department of Health has announced a package of interventions aimed at cutting waiting times for children needing specialised surgery at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital (CMJAH), the province’s health department said.

What the department plans to do

Departmental spokesperson Steve Mabona said the measures include improving theatre efficiency, strengthening the management of surgical waiting lists, enhancing case scheduling and expanding the Treatment Time Guarantee (TTG) programme. The initiative is intended to improve patient flow and maximise the use of operating theatres across Gauteng’s public hospitals.

Pressure on CMJAH’s paediatric surgical unit

CMJAH provides specialised paediatric surgical care for a range of conditions affecting infants and children, including congenital abnormalities, emergency cases and elective procedures. Mabona said the hospital has consistently maintained its paediatric surgical programme, performing more than 2,000 operations each year over the past several years.

Despite that output, Mabona acknowledged that waiting times for some elective procedures remain a significant challenge. He attributed delays to several factors: increasing demand for emergency surgery, limited theatre capacity, shortages of specialised anaesthetic personnel and restricted access to post-operative and critical care beds.

How emergencies affect elective surgery

Mabona explained that emergency paediatric cases frequently require immediate surgical intervention, often forcing the postponement of planned elective procedures. Prioritising critically ill children is necessary to deliver life-saving treatment without delay, but it reduces the amount of theatre time available for elective operations and contributes to longer waiting lists.

Steps to manage the backlog

To address the growing backlog, the department is strengthening surgical waiting-list management through regular clinical reviews and by prioritising patients according to the urgency of their conditions. Mabona said improvements to theatre scheduling and better coordination of surgical pathways are also helping to increase theatre utilisation and reduce cancellations.

One initiative under consideration is the introduction of a dedicated emergency paediatric surgical theatre list supported by its own anaesthetic and nursing teams. The department said this would improve access to emergency surgery while protecting dedicated theatre time for elective procedures, reducing cancellations and preventing further growth in waiting lists.

Treatment Time Guarantee and expected impact

Mabona said the Treatment Time Guarantee programme has already delivered positive results by improving access to surgery and reducing treatment delays across Gauteng’s public hospitals. He added that the programme continues to strengthen patient management and increase surgical output across the provincial health system.