Lifestyle
Posts List
Health
KZN nurse suspended after video shows patient assault at King Dinuzulu Hospital
A nurse at King Dinuzulu Hospital in Durban has been placed on precautionary suspension after a video allegedly showing her assaulting a patient went viral on social media.
The footage, which circulated widely on X, shows the nurse standing beside a male patient’s bed before pointing at him and repeatedly pushing her finger into his face. The patient is seen raising his hand as if to protect himself, while the nurse continues engaging with him before moving towards another patient.
The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health said it had taken the matter seriously and ordered an urgent internal investigation into the nurse’s conduct.
Health department condemns conduct
The department strongly condemned what is depicted in the video, saying such behaviour has no place in the province’s healthcare facilities.
“The Department unequivocally condemns this behaviour in the strongest possible terms. The conduct displayed in the video is completely unacceptable, violates the core values of our healthcare system, and will not be tolerated under any circumstances,” the department said.
It said the nurse would remain on precautionary suspension while the circumstances surrounding the incident are investigated.
“Following the emergence of the video, the Department has acted decisively. The nurse in question will be placed on precautionary suspension with immediate effect, pending a full and thorough internal investigation into the matter,” it said.
‘Corporal punishment has no place’
KwaZulu-Natal Health spokesperson Nathi Olifant said the alleged conduct was being investigated as a matter of urgency.
“We confirm that we are investigating this specific conduct as a matter of urgency. Corporal punishment has no place in our facilities, and we are committed to ensuring that all our patients are treated with the dignity, respect, and care they deserve,” Olifant said.
The department said disciplinary action would be considered once the investigation had been completed.
“We assure the public that we are taking this incident seriously and will ensure that appropriate disciplinary action is taken once the investigation is concluded,” it said.
Calls for further action
The incident has also prompted calls for the matter to go beyond the department’s internal disciplinary process.
DA KwaZulu-Natal health spokesperson Dr Imran Keeka said the nurse should face further consequences if the allegations are confirmed. He said the party would report the matter to the South African Nursing Council.
“This is gross professional misconduct,” Keeka said, arguing that patients should receive treatment with dignity, compassion and respect rather than being subjected to abuse.
He said criminal charges should also be considered if the allegations are proven.
The department has not indicated what disciplinary action may follow, saying the investigation must first establish the facts and circumstances surrounding the incident.
Economy
Vegetables disappear from South African plates when winter hits
As temperatures drop, breakfasts become toast instead of tomatoes, lunches lean towards bread and soup, and hearty dinners replace lighter meals. It’s an entirely human response to winter, but one that can leave vegetables falling further down the shopping list.
Every winter, South Africans naturally gravitate towards warm, comforting meals, but in the process, vegetables are often the first thing to disappear from the plate. Tenderstem® broccoli believes the solution isn’t convincing people to abandon comfort food but making it easier to build vegetables into the meals they’re already cooking. Convenience is the real fix: making the healthy choice the easy one. It is the thinking behind an approach that encourages South Africans to include quick-cooking vegetables such as Tenderstem® broccoli, which needs only a few minutes to prepare and can be added straight into meals already on the stove, rather than requiring a separate dish of their own.
Cold weather tends to draw us towards warm, filling foods, with bread, pasta and other carbohydrate-heavy favourites often becoming the easiest choice. The problem is not the comfort food. It is what gets pushed aside to make room for it.
The nutritional data reflects this pattern. According to South Africa’s National Nutrition Week, adults in this country already consume an average of around 230g of fruit and vegetables daily, which is just 58% of the internationally recommended 400g intake. That is the baseline in any season. In winter, when lighter meals feel less appealing and hot, filling food becomes the natural choice, vegetables can become even easier to overlook.
Diets low in fruit and vegetables are associated with a greater risk of non-communicable diseases, including type 2 diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Winter also coincides with South Africa’s flu season, making a varied diet especially relevant. Vitamin C and folate both contribute to normal immune function and can be found in a range of fresh vegetables.
The answer does not require complicated dietary changes or extra time in the kitchen. It starts with building greens into the meals people are already eating.
Start the week differently
One practical way to improve winter nutrition is to remove the daily decision. A vegetable egg bake or frittata, prepared on a Sunday evening and portioned into the fridge, provides a filling breakfast containing protein, vegetables and fibre for several days. On a cold weekday morning, having something ready to reheat makes the nutritious choice the convenient one.
Brassica greens work particularly well in this format because they hold their texture when baked and release less water than softer vegetables such as courgette or spinach. Tenderstem® broccoli can be added whole, requires no trimming and is edible from floret to stem. Fold a generous handful into whisked eggs, add cheese if desired and bake at 180°C for 20 to 25 minutes. Once portioned, it can be reheated in minutes.
It also answers a familiar winter problem. Breakfast often defaults to buttered toast, cereal or a rusk when the weather is cold and time is short. Preparing a vegetable-based protein option in advance changes that routine without adding pressure to the morning.
Add to what you already cook
Quick-cooking green vegetables can be added to soups, curries and lentil dishes in the final few minutes of cooking, making them an easy part of familiar winter meals.
The key is to choose a vegetable that holds its texture, works with robust flavours and requires little preparation. Tenderstem® broccoli cooks in three to five minutes and can be used from floret to stem. Add it to a butter chicken or lamb curry shortly before serving, stir it through soup or place it in a roasting tray with the roast for the final ten minutes of cooking. Even a grilled cheese sandwich can make room for a few green stems.
Each option fits into a meal that is already being prepared, without requiring a separate dish or additional washing up. An 80g serving counts as one of your five-a-day and is high in vitamin C and folate, which contribute to normal immune function. It also provides fibre, potassium and vitamin B6. “People do not stop caring about nutrition in winter. They choose food that feels warm, filling and manageable. The easiest way to keep vegetables on the menu is to build them into those familiar meals rather than treating them as a separate side dish,” explains Elise Ruddle, Chef and Nutritionist, South African brand representative for Tenderstem®.
Winter eating does not need to become a contest between comfort and nutrition. The more realistic answer is to make vegetables part of the comfort food itself. When greens belong in the curry, soup, breakfast bake or toasted sandwich, eating them no longer depends on anyone feeling virtuous.
