Assessing the procurement practices of Victoria Hospital

[摘要] ENGLISH SUMMARY : South Africa faces challenges of poor service delivery in all facets of government. Corruption in supply chain management (SCM) is one of these that are faced by government in public institutions. Procurement is a critical section of SCM, with procurement practices being adopted in 2003 to ensure that service is fair, equitable, transparent and competitive, and to ensure value for money. The Public Financial Management Act (No. 1 of 1999) guides institutions when utilising public funds. Government's current aim is to reduce fruitless and irregular expenditure. In 1995 government established procurement reforms with an aim to promoteprinciples of good governance and to address past socio-economic challenges. Best practices for procurement were adopted to address past inequitable policies and practices. Procurement reforms were introduced and supported by a number of legislation, including the adoption of the PFMA and Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act (No. 5 of 2000) (PPPFA). The procurement reforms were given an additional push by the implementation of the accounting officer's system for supply chain delegation (AOS). This study only focuses on the procurement section and the critical role that it plays in service delivery. The research focuses on the assessment of procurement practices at Victoria Hospital to ensure best practices and improve service delivery. Through this, Victoria Hospital is revealed to be utilising an effective procurement system. During the course of this research, a theoretical review is conducted to describe procurement best practices and to gain insight into the system utilised by adeveloped country in this public procurement. An interview system is also used to gain information on the procurement practices used at Victoria Hospital. This study reveals that this hospital previously had issues of compliance due to poor management systems. The study also highlights that a new administration was appointed in April 2013, after which SCM developed further in terms of compliance. Since the appointment of the new administration, there has been an improvement inprocurement practices.This study also ultimately highlights the challenge of achieving value for money in terms of procurement practices. The research reveals that procurement practices arenot always successful due to the electronic procurement systems used to promote good governance. The system used to source the quotation takes a long time and affects service to the patient. The researcher recommends that the integrated procurement system (IPS) that is used to promote best practices in procurement should be designed to meet value for money. The procurement system should support this through proper financial planning. It is also recommended that internal procurement control be strengthened to promote accountability and reporting, as strong procurement systems will ensure commitment to economic growth. The Department of Health should consider centralising procurement tenders; this will promote good governance and prevent the possibility of bias and unfairness.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University