MHR Newsletter - July 2021

NEWSLETTER TOPICS

Click on the topic below to go to the applicable section:

1. Celebrating International Nurses Day - 12 May 2021
2. Remember to confirm your availability for shifts
3. Clocking and shift arrangements at a client
4. COVID-19 Vaccination Information Hub
5. Increased UIF contribution - effective 1 June 2021
6. SARS 2021 IRP5 certificates and tax filing Season
7. Payment days of different payment options offered by MHR
8. Email addresses for administration and payment-related enquiries
   
9. Protection of personal information and confidentiality in the unit

Last, but not least

• Message from MHR
• Let's shine the spotlight on our stars

2. REMEMBER TO CONFIRM YOUR AVAILABILITY FOR SHIFTS

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our clients urgently need nursing staff and care workers. We therefore urge you to please confirm your availability with your local MHR Coordinator or MHR After-hours Call Centre. MHR sends out SMSs to reach a larger pool of panel members. After sending SMSs, MHR contacts panel members according to their confirmed availability. If you are available, please reply to the SMS or contact your local MHR Coordinator or MHR After-hours Call Centre to secure the shift. This will also assist us in providing a service to our clients and their patients. 

NB: Please do not contact the client to confirm your availability or to book a shift. 

3. CLOCKING AND SHIFT ARRANGEMENT AT CLIENTS

MHR books shifts according to clients’ requests, and a senior staff member at the client is responsible for the shift arrangements. For this reason, you are expected to:

• Transfer to a different unit during a shift upon a client’s request. If you do not want to transfer due to a valid reason, the client has the right to end your shift.
• Complete your scheduled shift according to the booking time and your agreement with MHR. Ending your shift before the scheduled end time or leaving the premises without the client’s consent can lead to disciplinary actions against you.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

• Please ensure that you always sign in/clock in when your shift starts and sign out/clock out when your shift ends. 
• When working at a Mediclinic client, remember to fill in your details on the COVID-19 Health Professional Clearance app before arriving at the facility. Herewith the link to the app: https://forms.mediclinic.co.za/clearance

5. INCREASED UIF CONTRIBUTION - EFFECTIVE 1 JUNE 2021

As per Government Gazette Number 44641, the monthly maximum remuneration for Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) contributions was increased to R17712 per month effective from 1 June 2021 onwards. This means that the monthly contributions limit value is now equivalent to the monthly benefit limit value, and the maximum monthly contribution has been raised from R148.72 to R177.12 per month.

6. SARS 2021 IRP5 CERTIFICATES AND TAX FILING SEASON

The South African Revenue Service (SARS) new tax season opened on 1 July this year. 

• Please visit SARS eFiling website (www.sarsefiling.co.za) to view your MHR IRP5 certificate.
• You are welcome to contact your local MHR Office should you require a hard copy or prefer to receive your IRP5 via email.
• Make sure that you use the latest Adobe Acrobat Reader software to open your IRP5. Click here to access the Adobe Acrobat Reader download website or download Adobe Acrobat Reader via Google Play if you are viewing your IRP5 on a cell phone.

7. PAYMENT DAYS OF DIFFERENT PAYMENT OPTIONS OFFERED BY MHR

The table below indicates the different payment days of the different payment options offered by MHR.

8. EMAIL ADDRESSES FOR ADMINISTRATION AND PAYMENT-RELATED ENQUIRIES

You are welcome to use the email addresses below for administration and payment-related enquiries:

• MHR Central Region (Free State, KwaZulu-Natal and Northern Cape): admin.central@mhr.co.za   |  pay.central@mhr.co.za

• MHR Northern Region (Johannesburg, Vaal Triangle and Mpumalanga): admin.north@mhr.co.za  |  pay.north@mhr.co.za

• MHR Tshwane Region (Pretoria, Brits and Limpopo): admin.tshwane@mhr.co.za  |  pay.tshwane@mhr.co.za

• MHR Western Cape Region (Southern and Western Cape locations): admin.wc@mhr.co.za  |  pay.wc@mhr.co.za

Please ensure that you use the ‘pay’ email addresses for payment-related enquiries and the ‘admin’ email addresses for administration-related questions to ensure your email is received by the correct MHR representative.

9. PROTECTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION

The Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013, commonly known as POPIA, came into effect on Thursday, 1 July 2021. The main purpose of this act is to ensure that every South African citizen’s constitutional right to privacy is upheld through the protection of his or her personal information.

Links to the documents below were shared with all panel members at the end of June 2021. Please familiarise yourself with the content of these documents.

• MHR Data Privacy Notice: https://bit.ly/mhr-privacy-notice
• MHR Confidentiality Policy: https://bit.ly/mhr-confidentiality-policy

Taking POPIA into consideration, the confidentiality of our patients and clients is of vital importance to each of us. Please familiarise yourself with the information below to ensure adherence to patient confidentiality.

WHAT DOES CONFIDENTIALITY IN THE UNIT/DEPARTMENT MEAN?

Understanding patient privacy

• According to the national Patients Rights’ Charter, every patient has the right to confidentiality and privacy. Patient privacy refers to the right of patients to determine when, how and to what extent their health information is shared with others.
• It involves maintaining confidentiality and sharing protected patient information only with healthcare providers and related professions who need it to take care of the patient.
• Patients have the right to determine how their health information is shared.

What does MHR classify as patient information?

• Clinical information or medical history
• Personal information and contact details
• Medication information and any medical results such as laboratory and radiology, etc.
• Images of a patient in the hospital (Written confirmation must be obtained if a patient is photographed or filmed)

What does this mean in the work environment?

• Keep all discussions with patients private or at a lower volume in shared rooms.
• Keep all clinical records stored safely so that they cannot be seen by anyone passing by (according to the client’s policy).
• All documents on which patient information appears are considered the client's property and may not leave the client’s premises without the authorisation of a Senior Manager.
• Clinical discussions regarding patients may not take place in public areas.
• Do not release any patient information to anyone who is not a close family member of the patient. Information may only be shared upon a patient’s consent.
• Do not allow photos to be taken of any patient without the patient’s signed consent.
• Refrain from sharing and posting any information or photos of patients, clients and MHR on social media platforms, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, etc. Click here to view our 'Social Media' Policy on our policies web page.

10. LAST, BUT NOT LEAST

We have shared the following video clip with our nursing panel members. The Hospital Association of South Africa published this video clip in 2019, before COVID-19, as a tribute to our South African nurses. Click here to enjoy some smiles again.

Stay safe