KZN invests R359 million in Mosvold Hospital upgrade

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24-08-2026
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The Witness
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MEC Simelane said investment in rural hospitals was essential to ensuring both patients and healthcare workers had appropriate facilities.

KwaZulu-Natal is investing R359 million in upgrading Mosvold Hospital in uMkhanyakude as the province steps up efforts to improve healthcare infrastructure in rural communities.

Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane visited the hospital on Friday to inspect progress on the infrastructure programme, which is currently about 63% complete and is expected to be finished within the next year.

The project includes a 40-unit staff accommodation block for healthcare professionals, a 22-bed paediatric unit and a mothers’ lodge that will accommodate up to 18 women and their babies.

The existing paediatric unit will also be converted into a nursery, while road infrastructure at the hospital is being upgraded.

Simelane said investment in rural hospitals was essential to ensuring both patients and healthcare workers had appropriate facilities.

“We cannot talk about improving healthcare in rural communities without investing in the infrastructure that supports that care.

“Our healthcare workers need proper facilities, and our communities deserve hospitals that are safe, functional and able to meet their needs,” she said.

The Mosvold project forms part of the Department of Health’s broader investment in healthcare facilities in uMkhanyakude and other rural districts.

MEC urges women to break silence on cancer

Following her visit to Mosvold Hospital, Simelane travelled to Nkungwini, near the South Africa-Eswatini border, where she led a Women’s Health edition of the department’s Isibhedlela Kubantu community outreach programme.

She used the event to urge women to talk openly about breast and cervical cancer and to seek medical attention early.

“Not talking about cancer does not mean that it will go away. Silence creates a lack of knowledge, and that lack of knowledge can kill women. We must talk, we must screen and we must seek help early,” she said.

Simelane encouraged women to discuss cancer with their daughters, mothers, sisters and mothers-in-law and to share information within their communities.

According to GLOBOCAN estimates, South Africa recorded 14 712 new breast cancer cases and 10 532 cervical cancer cases in 2022. About 5 200 women died from breast cancer and 6,000 from cervical cancer that year.

While the cancer burden is increasing, Simelane said early detection and treatment could save lives.

“Cancer is increasing, but that does not mean we are powerless. Some cancers can be prevented, and many can be treated successfully when they are detected early.”

She also warned against attributing symptoms to witchcraft, saying this could delay diagnosis and treatment.

“When a woman discovers a lump or notices a change in her body, let us not immediately say she has been bewitched. Go to the clinic and get checked. Valuable time can be lost when we delay seeking medical help.”

Simelane urged women aged 25 and older to attend cervical cancer screening and have Pap smears where appropriate.

She also cautioned breastfeeding women against dismissing breast changes as a normal part of breastfeeding.

“If you are breastfeeding and you notice a lump that does not go away, changes in the breast or nipple, unusual discharge or persistent pain, please go to the clinic and get checked.”

She called on women to use available information and help spread awareness about cancer among their families and communities.