Six patients died when their oxygen supply was interrupted at Shifa Private Hospital in Durban on Saturday.

Lenmed Group spokesperson Michelle Naidoo said the incident occurred at the hospital during the early hours of Friday.

“At the time, 77 patients were admitted in the hospital. The hospital staff responded immediately and attended to all patients who were receiving supplemental oxygen and ventilation and who were affected by the disruption.

“Treating physicians were notified by the hospital and arrived to render assistance. During the process, all patients in need of resuscitation received the requisite attention. Regrettably, six patients died,” she said.

The Lenmed Group has launched an urgent investigation.

“Lenmed has also been in contact with the supplier of the oxygen equipment and infrastructure to determine the exact cause of the interruption,” Naidoo said.

Lenmed Group CEO Amil Devchand offered condolences to the families of the six patients.

“We have made all our resources available to support them during this painful period. I would like to assure all patients and their families that measures have been instituted in the interim, to prevent a reoccurrence of such an incident,” he said.

He said the Lenmed Group was maintaining all requisite staffing and support levels across all its facilities that are responsive to the current extreme high demand for health care during the Covid-19 second wave.

“It is the unfortunate reality that we are operating in unprecedented and extremely difficult times. The scale and impact of the second wave of Covid-19 infections is significant,” said Devchand.

“I would like to thank our front-line staff, the doctors, nurses and other specialists for their continued dedication to the wellbeing and comfort of our patients. We will continue to provide them with the support they require to make their work endurable.”