Fifty-six years ago, Dr. Christiaan Barnard made history at Groote Schuur Hospital by performing the world’s first human heart transplant, bringing global recognition to the facility, Cape {town} Etc reports.
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Today, visitors can walk through the same doors to the Heart of Cape Town Museum, where they can step back in time and see the original operating room, complete with the once cutting-edge machinery and instruments used during that ground-breaking procedure.
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The museum not only highlights Dr Barnard’s pioneering work but also pays tribute to the 25-year-old donor, Denise Darvall, and the 53-year-old heart recipient, Louis Washkansky. The six-hour surgery was performed by a team of 30 medical professionals, though Washkansky sadly passed away 18 days later from pneumonia.
The operating theatre was declared a National Monument, and the museum has become a regular educational stop for school visits.
However, the museum’s future is now uncertain. A letter from the Groote Schuur Hospital Facility Board (GSHFB) on 17 July informed museum curator Advocate Hennie Joubert that the Management Agreement will expire on 4 July, 2025, after which the space will revert to the board.
Joubert, who began work on the museum in 2006 and opened it on 3 December, 2007, secured a 10-year contract with a 10-year renewal. He aimed to recreate the room as it was on the night of the operation.
The museum features life-like silicone figures of Barnard and his team, as well as a smiling Washkansky post-surgery. Many original items were donated, and Joubert secured the copyrights for others.
Joubert expressed his preference for the museum to remain but noted that the hospital seems uninterested. He is unsure why they want to end the contract and has not yet started looking for a new location for the collection, though the Dr Chris Barnard Museum in Beaufort West is a potential option. If he has to vacate, Joubert plans to store the items and may offer them to another museum but does not intend to leave them for Groote Schuur.
The museum currently pays R9 635 monthly in rent to the GSHFB, with total payments including utilities amounting to R18 256.70. Joubert mentioned that the board had previously threatened to end the contract and take him to court despite an extension. He suspects there might be a hidden agenda behind their actions.
According to Ben Mwasinga, Senior Manager of Heritage Conservation Management at the South African Heritage Resources Agency, any changes to the museum site, now a Provincial Heritage Site, would require a permit from the relevant heritage authority, in this case, Heritage Western Cape.
The provincial Health and Wellness Department stated that the board is still exploring options for the space. To preserve good relations with tenants, they provide at least 12 months’ notice to allow for alternative arrangements.
The department clarified that the only agreement in place pertains to space rental and financial obligations, with no other commercial interests in the museum. Some exhibits, part of the University of Cape Town’s archives, would need to be returned upon lease termination.
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Picture: Heart of Cape Town Museum / Facebook