Objectives

The primary objective is to ensure the safe, efficient, and dignified movement of patients, medical equipment, and essential goods within the Gamalakhe Community Health Centre. The service aims to support clinical and administrative departments through reliable porterage and messenger duties, contributing to uninterrupted healthcare delivery and optimal facility operations.

Scope

The contract covers a seven-month period for rendering portering and messenger services at the specified facility. Core responsibilities include transporting patients via wheelchairs and stretchers, assisting nursing staff with patient mobilization, delivering and collecting patient files, meals, and equipment, disinfecting trolleys and wheelchairs, maintaining water dispensers, responding to emergency calls, and respectfully transporting deceased individuals. The service mandates continuous seven-day-a-week coverage across day, weekend, public holiday, and night shifts.

Technical Requirements

• Provision of seven qualified personnel: five for weekday operations, three for weekend/public holiday coverage, and one dedicated night-shift worker.
• Minimum educational qualification of ABET (Adult Basic Education and Training) for all deployed staff.
• Submission of mandatory compliance documentation, including an updated Central Suppliers Database (CSD) report, B-BBEE verification certificate or sworn affidavit, valid CIPC registration, and SARS tax clearance confirmation.
• Documented proof of prior experience delivering similar portering or messenger services in public or private health facilities.
• Pricing must strictly comply with national minimum wage regulations; quotations priced below minimum wage will be deemed non-responsive. Overhead cost escalations may be adjusted annually based on the Consumer Price Index (CPIx), while personnel costs adjust according to officially gazetted minimum wage updates.
• Strict adherence to official quotation forms without retyping, alongside mandatory completion of standard declaration forms (SBD 4 and SBD 6.1).

Skills Requirements

• Proficiency in safely transferring and transporting patients using wheelchairs, beds, and stretchers while adhering to infection control protocols.
• Ability to assist healthcare professionals with patient lifting, positioning, and mobility assistance while maintaining dignity, safety, and confidentiality.
• Competence in cleaning, disinfecting, and maintaining medical transport equipment and facility amenities.
• Strong situational awareness and responsiveness to emergency calls, urgent departmental requests, and shifting operational priorities.
• Respectful handling of deceased persons and proper coordination with mortuary or administrative departments.
• Effective communication, teamwork, and basic reporting skills to liaise with nursing, administrative, and operational staff.
• Foundational literacy and numeracy aligned with ABET standards to accurately complete duty logs, handover notes, and inventory records.

Explanation of Unusual or Complicated Terms

• ABET: Adult Basic Education and Training, a South African educational framework providing foundational literacy, numeracy, and vocational skills for adults who did not complete formal schooling.
• CSD: Central Suppliers Database, a National Treasury-maintained registry used to verify supplier legitimacy, tax compliance, and legal standing before any public sector contract is awarded.
• B-BBEE: Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment, a legislative framework designed to promote economic participation, ownership, and management transformation for historically disadvantaged groups.
• 80/20 Preference Point System: A standard South African public procurement evaluation model where 80 points are allocated to competitive pricing and 20 points to specific socio-economic goals, such as prioritizing enterprises registered and operating within the local municipality.
• Price Escalation Clauses: Contractual provisions permitting annual financial adjustments to overhead costs based on CPIx inflation metrics, while labour costs are strictly capped to adjust only in line with officially gazetted minimum wage increases.