South Africa’s healthcare systems need significant support to build capacity to manage the COVID-19 crisis. Tackling the challenges head on is critical to limit the human impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

RMB, through FirstRand’s South African Pandemic Relief Effort (SPIRE) Fund and other key initiatives, is providing resources, funding and equipment to assist healthcare workers on the frontline.

FirstRand’s SPIRE Fund

SPIRE’s immediate objective is to accelerate the scaling of South Africa’s COVID-19 critical care capacity. It is particularly focused on supporting the medical structures and resources of the country, providing ventilators, as well as testing and frontline protective solutions, and addressing critical bed capacity.

  • The FirstRand Foundation, RMB and FNB have committed R100-million as an anchor investment into SPIRE
  • SPIRE is driven by a group of volunteers from across FirstRand and RMB
  • SPIRE works closely with the Solidarity Fund, Business for South Africa (B4SA) and other industry and sector initiatives

To contribute to the SPIRE Fund, contact Leon von Moltke on leon.vonmoltke@rmb.co.za.

Protecting the frontline healthcare workers

Through SPIRE, we have assisted the Solidarity Fund in acquiring five million masks. We have donated 4,000 masks to the Charlotte Maxeke Hospital to help protect frontline healthcare workers.

The SPIRE Fund has also co-funded a significant order of personal protective equipment (PPE) as part of the current BS4A and Solidarity Response Fund initiatives. This includes 2 million surgical masks and 216 000 KN95 respirators. This critical stock is intended to support national frontline doctors, nurses and community healthcare workers, to protect them in their fight against the COVID19 pandemic.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) procurement

RMB has designed and implemented a procure-to-pay system for the Solidarity Fund. The system puts an approval workflow in place to streamline all procurement and payment functions for acquisition of PPE. The system went live to enable the receipt of over 2.5 million surgical masks and almost one million KN95 respirators in April. All new Solidarity Fund transactions are now being processed via this system.

Intubox

RMB is a proud contributor to FirstRand’s SPIRE Fund which has funded the development of the Intubox – a perspex box that protects hospital workers and critical care patients from airborne, virus-spreading particles, approved by medical doctors and professors. SPIRE funded the development of a prototype, along with the manufacturing of the 375 boxes which were donated to the Charlotte Maxeke Hospital.

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Screen and Test

Through SPIRE we have imported 100,000 UltraGene COVID-19 test kits to help South Africa’s National Health Laboratory Services (NHLS) accelerate testing. These kits, secured through the networks of Right to Care, a non-profit organisation, can produce results in ~2.5 hours.

SPIRE is standing by to fund further shipments of frontline protective equipment, respirators and ventilators as part of the current B4SA and Solidarity Response Fund initiatives.

Hotels for Healthcare - a ‘home away from home ‘solution

Ubuntu Beds and RMB, through the SPIRE Fund, are collaborating on a Home Away from Home initiative that aims to unite hospitality businesses that now stand empty, with healthcare workers who are fighting the virus on the front lines. There’s a four-way win: beds are filled, health workers can be accommodated closer to their workplaces, health workers’ families are not as exposed, and job retention is improved in the hospitality and related services sectors.

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Increasing hospital ICU capacity

Through the SPIRE fund, much-needed additional ICU capacity has been provided to Charlotte Maxeke Hospital. Containing an additional 29 beds, the extension more than doubles the ICU capacity of the hospital. SPIRE provided R5 million of funding, additional project management services and procurement capacity. This project has been used as a template for a number of other ICU expansions supported by SPIRE, including wards at the Livingstone and Dora Nginza Hospitals in the Eastern Cape as well as the King Edward VIII hospital in KwaZulu-Natal.

Elderly care

Older generations face a potentially life-threatening risk if infected with COVID-19. In care homes increased risk of contracting COVID-19 amongst the elderly is accelerated by contact with care workers, family members and other members of staff coming from the outside into the facility. To help care for the elderly, RMB through the SPIRE fund has provided direct support to most vulnerable as well as training for management and healthcare workers.

On completed rollout PPE and care packs have been ordered for 166 homes. Further, Operational Health and Safety and Compassion training has been provided to over 70 care homes via the Centre for HIV-AIDS Prevention Studies.

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