Purpose designed to blend in with the Kalahari landscape, the new state-of-the-art facility is a collaborative effort between Upington based ophthalmologist, Dr Erhardt Kidson and Medicross, a provider of primary healthcare services and a fully-owned subsidiary of Netcare, a leading South African private healthcare group.
The custom-built hospital with its modern, cutting-edge equipment is the 15th day theatre to be opened by Medicross in South Africa and forms part of Medicross’ expansion into the day theatre market.
The 16 bed day ward also has special recliners to accommodate patients undergoing procedures requiring spinal blocks or conscious sedation. The facility also incorporates two fully equipped consulting rooms for visiting specialists,” Dr Van der Merwe explained.
Serving as a day theatre facility where some of the region’s foremost doctors and a number of prominent visiting specialists will practise, Dr Van der Merwe believes that the Kalahari Cataract, Eye and Day Theatre will do much to improve access to quality healthcare services for the people of the Northern Cape.
A range of surgical procedures, from minor to some of the more advanced may be performed in day theatres, either under general or local anaesthetic, spinal blocks or conscious sedation, as appropriate. These include G & C scopes and certain dental, ear, nose and throat (ENT), general, gynaecological, maxillo-facial, ophthalmic, orthopaedic, plastic and reconstructive, and urological procedures.