Gareth Dart, a former intern clinical psychologist placed at Frere Hospital by the Eastern Cape Department of Health (ECDOH) during the height of the COVID–19 pandemic, has accused the department of alleged obstruction, exploitation and acting in bad faith, and has instructed his attorneys to proceed with legal action against them.
Despite working under full clinical supervision and contributing over 900 hours of service, Dart was never paid for his work. His repeated attempts at restitution have allegedly been met with stalling tactics, cancelled negotiations and malicious conduct by senior officials.
I have written to the Head of Department, Dr Rolene Wagner, to urge her to immediately settle this matter out of court or face the very costly consequences of the Department’s folly.
The Department has consistently undermined Dart’s professional standing by referring to him as a “volunteer”, despite his impeccable credentials and qualifications.
Under the Health Professions Act 56 of 1974 and the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) regulations for professional boards, it is illegal to appoint someone as an “intern clinical psychologist” in a voluntary capacity. Interns must be formally registered with the HPCSA, placed in an accredited training post and remunerated at the gazetted rate.
Their claim that Dart was a volunteer is a statutory breach. Penalties include HPCSA sanctions for the supervisor and the institution, as well as labour law violations under the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, which requires fair pay for work performed. They have thus exposed themselves to both professional misconduct charges and legal liability.
Furthermore, according to the Disaster Management Act (DMA), which was in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, Dart’s service was rendered lawfully under emergency provisions, which allowed the Department to engage professionals outside the normal Human Resources framework. The Department has opted to ignore this route.
Despite Dr Wagner’s commitment to resolving the matter within two weeks in January 2022, the Director of Legal Services and the Director of Wellness have allegedly consistently acted in bad faith and obstructed processes to settle the matter out of court.
The impact on Dart has been devastating. He is unable to register with the HPCSA and thus cannot practice locally or abroad, which has left him financially ruined. He has endured complex trauma and loss of dignity.
The Department’s ongoing non-payment of employees, service providers and suppliers has left a devastating trail of destruction on countless other lives. Our people deserve to live lives of hope and dignity. What dignity is there in financial ruin?
Enough is enough. Until the ECDOH cleans house and rids itself of corrupt and unethical senior officials who play God with people’s lives, they will continue to bleed money that they don’t have in the courts, and their downward spiral will continue unchecked.