Good Morning Angels: Helping an Alberton mom and her son after a rugby accident
On Good Morning Angels, we assisted an Alberton schoolboy who was left in pain due to an ongoing health worker strike.
"We don't really pay attention to such things, until it actually affects someone we know,” writes Yvette van der Westhuizen in her appeal to Good Morning Angels for assistance for a rugby player from their local high school team.
Bastian de Freitas broke his collar bone in two places during a match for Alberton High’s First team on Saturday, 4 March. He was taken to a state hospital in Vereeniging. He was in immense pain and in need of immediate attention.
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At 9pm that evening, he was taken for X-rays and only admitted to a ward on Sunday evening. De Freitas was supposed to be assessed by a surgeon on Monday, when the health worker strike started.
He never saw the surgeon or received pain medication or food, so his mom, Heather, took him home on Tuesday.
More than a week later, Bastian is still in pain at home as the strike continues. Even if the strike ends, there is no indication when Bastian would be assisted, as the overloaded hospital would have to work through the backlog.
Despite not having the funds for private hospital treatment, Bastian has an appointment on Friday, almost two weeks after the incident. Heather feels she has failed her son "and the situation he is in is not of his own doing”.
REQUEST FOR: Bastian de Freitas and his mom, Heather
REQUEST FROM: Yvette van der Westhuizen
ANGEL: The Good Morning Angels Fund NPC, supported by schools that have participated in the Morning Family Quiz
SPONSORING: The Good Morning Angels Fund has received support from various schools that participated in the Morning Family Quiz over the past weeks. We will direct these funds towards a donation of R50,000 to help Bastian’s family get the medical care he needs.
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Good day Martin
I hope you are well.
Firstly, I need to tell you I am no writer but my heart goes out to this family as the state of our health system is depressing and definitely inadequate, due to the strikes at the government hospitals currently. We don't really pay attention to such things until it actually affects someone we know.
Bastian is an Alberton High School student who is a rugby player of the first team. He has not been able to obtain an operation to repair his collar bone which was broken in two places on the 4th of March during a rugby match against Hoërskool Overvaal, because of the strikes at the various government hospitals.
When it happened, he was taken to the Kopanong Hospital in Vereeniging where he stayed without pain medication or food until Tuesday night when finally his mother discharged him as they told them they will not be operating until the strike is over. Therefore, he has been in pain since and not been able to attend school and unfortunately his family do not have medical aid or the means in order to fix this.
This email is to appeal to you for your assistance to obtain Bastian the help he needs to repair a broken collar bone.
Below is more detail from his mom, Heather.
Please call me if you need any further information or assistance.
Many thanks
Yvette van der Westhuizen
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