Some say they are being turned away with valid vouchers.
The department’s Dr Aquina Thulare said the Johnson & Johnson vaccine had reached stage four approval and was almost ready for full market authorisation.
They said they planned to withdraw from working overtime from next month.
Some nurses said that they wished that government had not rushed into the vaccination process and over-committed itself to healthcare workers.
As the country awaits the arrival of the first doses of COVID-19 vaccines, many South Africans remain sceptical. Eyewitness News spoke to healthcare professionals to gauge their views on the issue. #COVID19news #vaccines
President Cyril Ramaphosa has acknowledged the vaccine roll-out will be the biggest and most complex logistical undertaking in the country's history.
Eyewitness News spoke to some of South Africa’s healthcare professionals to find out what it’s like to fight the COVID-19 pandemic head on. #COVID19news #Frontliners #MentalHealth
Doctors and nurses are not coping emotionally and physically with the second wave of COVID-19. And there's little respite in sight until the vaccine comes.
Eerste River health worker Nosipho Nkantini had to have an emergency delivery after COVID complications in December.
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union warned that hospitals did not have the capacity to deal with the influx of patients with the virus.
Ramaphosa called 2020 a year from hell and paid tribute to the armies healthcare professionals who've been working with little rest since COVID-19 first arrived.
This is an increase from the previous seven days during which 159 infections in the public health service were picked up.
Participants were encouraged to take a reflective walk in their own communities for causes close to their heart as the iconic event went virtual.
Nehawu said that not enough was being done to protect its members during the COVID-19 outbreak and if their issues were not addressed soon, then it would embark on a full strike next month.
Researchers from the Human Sciences Research Council and UKZN say this calls for the government to improve its use of digital platforms to communicate with its employees and the general public.
Nurses holding placards reading “No US dollar no work” and “#Nurses can’t breath” said they had to protest because they could not survive on a monthly salary of 3,000 Zimbabwe dollars ($47).
Just as they perform what is their professional duty, we too have a duty to them and to their families, writes Cyril Ramaphosa.
Their work makes them more vulnerable to contracting the virus and as infection rates rise, so too did their anxiety.
