Johannesburg - Employers in South Africa may soon have to accept sick notes from traditional healers when their employees have been off work due to illness, reports
Finweek in its latest edition.
The Traditional Health Practitioners Act, which was passed earlier this year, paves the way for employees to submit sick notes from traditional practitioners to their employers.
That's fuelled fierce debate with regard to the related costs to employers.
A survey conducted by Lekana Employee Benefit Solutions across all work sectors last year in a 400 000 sample of employees, showed that sick leave costs employers around R642m a year. That's just for payroll and excludes lost productivity.
According to Finweek, sister publication of Fin24, the Act will be implemented once the Traditional Healers' Council is formed and registered with the department of health.
Controversial
Johan Zietsman, policy executive for labour and human development at the SA Chamber of Business (Sacob), says that the issue is very controversial in business circles because the current system used in the workplace has been tried and tested and the standards of the SA Medical Association comply with the existing system.
Employers are concerned about the monitoring of sick notes and possible increased costs to companies. "We definitely won't support any system without a reasonable amount of control and monitoring, like we are used to under the Medical Council," says Zietsman.
Doctors for Life International, a non-profit organisation, has also voiced similar concerns. Bola Omoniyi, the organisation's spokesperson, told Finweek the level of official authority being planned for traditional healers is one that has potential consequences for all aspects of South African society - including the economy.
"Many aspects of the 'healing' practices used by traditional healers can't be verified by an independent observer, as can be done with modern medicine. That means that, more often than not, the claims of a traditional healer can't be subjected to an objective test to prove whether they're true or false."
Herbs and plants
Most traditional healers claim their powers come from ancestral spirits or other intangible forces. While the use of herbs and plants can be subjected to scientific, objective tests - and formal training can be designed around their use - other practices that fall under traditional healing cannot be brought to an acceptable standard that will ensure public safety.
Ndumiso Voyi, an associate at specialist law firm Leppan Beech, soothed fears, saying the Traditional Healers' Council is to provide for a framework to ensure efficacy, safety and quality of traditional healthcare services in SA.
The council's functions will include making enquiries and conducting investigations into the complaints and allegations concerning the conduct of registered traditional health practitioners.
Read more about the Act and the debate in Finweek - on sale now. You can also subscribe online.