Assessing records management in municipalities with adverse audit opinions in Limpopo Province, South Africa

Abstract

This article assesses records management in municipalities with adverse audit opinions in the Limpopo province, South Africa. Audit reports issued by the Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA) yearly indicate that poor recordkeeping is one of the factors contributing to adverse audit opinions in the public sector. The high level of corruption and maladministration, and lack of accountability and transparency in municipalities have become endemic and are a cause for concern in South Africa. Access to relevant and comprehensive information from records is essential for municipalities to perform their constitutional duties effectively. For this study, a quantitative research approach was employed using the survey design. Six municipalities in Limpopo that had adverse audit outcomes in the auditor-general’s report of 2015/2016 were targeted. A total of 92 questionnaires were distributed to registry staff employed in the municipalities and 86 of these were completed and returned. Findings revealed that the selected municipalities in the province face numerous challenges relating to records management practices, including staff shortages, lack of training and poor storage facilities. The study recommends that municipalities’ management and political office-bearers take all the necessary steps to prioritise records management by employing more people. The study further recommends that more universities in South Africa should provide formal qualifications in records management, and government officials should make funding available for records management practices.

Monitoring and Evaluating Electronic Health Records Systems in Public and Private Hospitals in the Ethekwini Area, Kwazulu Natal, South Africa

“…The private hospital further revealed that random visit to the offsite storage forms part of monitoring and evaluation plan to measure work progress. Marutha (2012) accentuated that it is vital to develop recurrent formal procedures for monitoring and auditing of electronic records systems. The author, however, did not describe the metrics that will guide the evaluation and tracking process.…”

Change management in the implementation of electronic health records (EHR) systems at Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital, South Africa

“…The overall problem is that, for many years, South Africa has been attempting to implement EHR systems in both public and private hospitals yet concerns and issues of managing change in the implementation have not been fully addressed. Even though several previous studies (Luthuli 2017, Marutha 2016, Thomas 2016, Katuu 2015, Marutha& Ngulube 2012, Weeks 2012) pointed out the necessity of implementing EHR systems to improve health service delivery in South Africa, the question regarding management of change has not been fully examined. There is no notable evidence regarding management of change in the KZN setting or specifically at Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital.…”

“…For example, Luthuli (2017), in a comparative analysis of public and private hospitals in KZN, acknowledged the need for ICT integration to improve management of health records for public health service delivery but did not examine change management in this integration process. Likewise, Marutha (2012) focused on the assessment of medical records management in healthcare service delivery in Limpopo Province and mentioned the need for adopting EHR systems to ensure successful delivery of health services, but the research falls short of recommending change management strategies in systems implementation. Thomas (2016) examined the EHR system implementation in primary healthcare and underscored the high degree of change that should be managed during pre-and post-adoption of the EHR systems.…”

Effect of Globalization on Primary Healthcare Services in Nasarawa State, Nigeria

“…According to Marutha and Ngulube (2012), due to a lack of effective record and payment management systems, health workers in both public and private institutions in most developing countries, particularly medical doctors and nurses, were either unable or struggling to provide timely and effective health services to citizens. In their view, ineffective record and payment management systems typically result in lengthy patient wait times before completing payment or getting health care.…”

“…computer hardware such as e-mails, database and word processing. It is an intangible soft record created and preserved through the usage of an ICT system (Marutha, & Ngulube, 2012). In the view of McDonald (2006), electronic records are the evidence, in digital form, of transactions undertaken by individuals or by organizations.…”