{"id":46581,"date":"2026-01-03T14:37:04","date_gmt":"2026-01-03T14:37:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=46581"},"modified":"2026-01-03T14:37:04","modified_gmt":"2026-01-03T14:37:04","slug":"sama-warns-festive-season-drinking-is-straining-public-hospitals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2026\/01\/03\/sama-warns-festive-season-drinking-is-straining-public-hospitals\/","title":{"rendered":"SAMA warns festive season drinking is straining public hospitals &#8211; SABC News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>The South African Medical Association (SAMA) has warned that increased alcohol consumption during the festive season is placing severe pressure on the country\u2019s public healthcare system.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">WATCH | The South African Medical Association says it is concerned by the high number of alcohol-related admissions at hospitals during the festive season, which they say overburdens healthcare workers and resources, among others. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/cx1IjOx7d7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">pic.twitter.com\/cx1IjOx7d7<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 SABC News (@SABCNews) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SABCNews\/status\/2007418426394853749?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">January 3, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">[ON AIR] Alcohol abuse continues to place severe pressure on South Africa\u2019s emergency services, with hospitals, ambulance services and trauma units reporting spikes in alcohol-related injuries, violence and accidents \u2014 particularly over weekends and peak periods. Dr Mvuyisi\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/PPpDvKaU5x\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">pic.twitter.com\/PPpDvKaU5x<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 SAfmRadio \ud83d\udcfb (@SAfmRadio) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SAfmRadio\/status\/2006613337258258784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">January 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>The association says hospitals are experiencing a surge in alcohol-related admissions, particularly at emergency units, which is stretching already limited resources and staff capacity.<\/p>\n<p>It urged the public to drink responsibly, warning that excessive alcohol consumption continues to have a direct impact on patient care and the well-being of frontline health workers.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">WATCH | Gugu Xaba, CEO of Save the Children South Africa, says several factors contribute to teenage pregnancy in the country, including alcohol abuse and transactional sex, among others. She adds that, in some cases, education is provided but often ignored. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/owPWFIrH7H\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">pic.twitter.com\/owPWFIrH7H<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 SABC News (@SABCNews) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SABCNews\/status\/2005724975760630068?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">December 29, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">WATCH | Deputy National Commissioner for Policing Lt-General Tebello Mosikili says police have intensified operations nationwide as South Africans prepare to usher in the new year, warning that alcohol remains a major driver of violent crime. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/mo845ixCnR\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">pic.twitter.com\/mo845ixCnR<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 SABC News (@SABCNews) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SABCNews\/status\/2006430442195460473?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">December 31, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s been an outcry about the shortage of doctors that are around, but it\u2019s not only doctors, nurses and other clinicians. Just the other week I was interviewing about specialists also exiting the public sector. It puts pressure on those that are within the system to be able to manage this caseload that is suddenly influxing in December,\u201d says the Association Deputy Chairperson, Zanele Bikitsha.<\/p>\n<p>RELATED VIDEO | Dr Khosi Jiyane on relationships with alcohol<br \/><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Dr Khosi Jiyane on relationships with alcohol\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/FSGT5Boc4JE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>                    <!--begin code --><\/p>\n<p>                    <!--end code --><\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#SAMA #warns #festive #season #drinking #straining #public #hospitals #SABC #News<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The South African Medical Association (SAMA) has warned that increased alcohol consumption during the festive season is placing severe pressure&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":46583,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46581","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46581","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46581"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46581\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46584,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46581\/revisions\/46584"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46583"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46581"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46581"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46581"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}